Nebula
by moonymonster
Summary: Celeste, a schizophrenic trainer, and her sister are travelling through Eterna Forest when they are attacked by a deadly new Team. Celeste is taken-but how will this Team react to her without the control of medication? And how are they connected to the disappearance of Ash, Dawn, and Brock four years ago?
1. CHAPTER ONE

_**NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

 _Author's note: Hello everyone! Welcome to Nebula! I began writing this story nine years ago, so its setting is not the current arc of the anime but the Sinnoh arc. This story is rated PG-13 due to dark tones, and its maps are based off of the games, not the anime; however, it contains many anime characters, and is not a game-based story. Please enjoy!_

— — — — — —

CHAPTER ONE

— — — — — —

As Tony clip-clopped down the road, the blaze of his bright blue mane dampened due to his growing exhaustion, his twelve-year-old rider tried her hardest to ignore the petite Espeon dancing between his ears. Unlike most Espeons, this creature had neon green tabby stripes running all over her deep purple body, and wore a wide, mischievous smile on her face. However, the blue-haired girl couldn't see it as she kept her eyes firmly trained on Tony's mane.

"C'mon, Tony," she muttered. "Stay focused. Nothing's there."

 _Except me._ The Espeon did a backflip, balancing herself on the tip of one of the Ponyta's ears. Her three-pronged tail waved high in the air as a counterweight. Tony didn't notice.

 _Hey Celeste, look!_

"Shut up," the girl whispered, and kept her gaze on Tony's mane.

 _Hey, Celeste! Celeste! Look at me! I'm_ —

" _Shut up!"_ Celeste snarled, and batted at the Espeon. The creature dodged it easily, and jumped over the girl's head to land on Tony's rump.

"Celeste…? Are you okay?"

Celeste whirled, and saw her sister's Rapidash trot up beside her, gray mane and tail streaming behind him. She looked up a little higher and saw her sister seated on his back, her brown eyes filled with worry.

"Who were you talking to, Cellie?"

"No one. Tony. No one. Are we going to camp soon?"

"Celeste…" The teenager absentmindedly grabbed the minimized Friend Ball that was attached to a chain around her neck and began to play with it. "Are you feeling all right?"

"I think there's a fire pit over there!" Celeste yelled, kicking Tony's sides. Pina groaned.

"Fine. But you're not getting out of this!"

The elder followed the younger, who had already found the abandoned fire pit. "See? I was right," she said. "We need wood though."

"I…guess I'll get some," said Pina. "You rub down Tony."

"Okay." Celeste watched as Pina cantered off. Then she sighed in relief and dismounted. For a little while, at least, she could relax.

 _You used to like it when I play tricks,_ the Espeon accused. She rolled down Tony's tail as Celeste pulled off his saddle, cartwheeling as she hit the ground. _You always laughed_ —

"Shut up, Espy! Go away!" She pulled off Tony's bridle, a little too roughly. Tony snorted. "Sorry, Tony. I'll get your nosebag. Unless you want to graze tonight." Tony bumped his head against her shoulder and lowered his head to the grass surrounding them.

 _Why don't you like my tricks anymore?_ Espy pestered. She stood on her hind legs, and pawed at the hem of Celeste's dress. Celeste glared, then trained her eyes back on Tony.

 _You've changed_ —

"Of course I have! I'm a Pokémon trainer, I've already got a badge! And _you're not real_ _!"_

Espy snorted. _That badge won't keep Zammy away._

"Shut up! Go away! Tony's real! You aren't!" Celeste snatched a large brush from her bag and walked over to Tony. "See? I'm touching him! He's real!"

Espy said nothing. Celeste turned around. The creature was gone.

"Of course," she muttered, but focused on rubbing down her Ponyta, the sun setting beyond the thick forest trees behind her.

— — — — — —

"No thanks," Celeste said shortly when Pina passed her a bowl of soup. Pina shoved it into her hands anyway.

"You can't take your meds on an empty stomach. Eat."

Celeste sighed. "Sorry. I'm just…not really hungry." She forced herself to eat a few mouthfuls, until Pina relaxed. There was silence as the sisters ate—though they did not look much like sisters. Pina, older by seven years, wore practical camouflage cargo pants, a sleeveless black turtleneck, and hiking boots. Her only accessories were a couple of green barrettes holding back long brown hair and the Friend Ball necklace around her neck. Celeste, far more colorful, had deep blue eyes and wavy cerulean hair that draped behind her back. Today she'd chosen to wear a crimson sundress with black and white hearts scattered across in a nice print, finishing with black leggings and scarlet riding boots. Her saddlebags were packed with many more outfits, unlike her rather more seasoned sister, who didn't bother to waste space on extra clothes.

"So I think another day's riding'll get us out of Eterna Forest," Pina said, then spooned up another mouthful of canned soup. "Then we can sleep in proper beds and battle Gardenia. Don't worry, with Dashing and Tony she'll be a piece of cake."

"She specializes in grass, right?" Celeste asked. Pina nodded.

"I took her down easy last time. It won't be hard for you."

"Yeah…"

Celeste looked at her sister and tried not to gasp. Espy was back, only now she sat cheerfully on Pina's head, licking a paw to wash her face. When she caught Celeste's eye, she smiled widely. Celeste looked away.

"Can I have my medicine, please?"

Pina cocked her head, nearly dislodging the Espeon sitting on it. Espy waved her paws comedically, then rolled down Pina's arm, only to land on all four feet, a smirk on her face. Pina didn't notice. "It's a little early, isn't it? I know it makes you sleepy—"

"Can I have my medicine, please?"

Pina hesitated, then nodded. "Right." She got up and walked over to one of her saddlebags. She pulled out a medicine counter and a bottle of water, then handed both to Celeste. "Here you go."

"Thank you." Celeste downed the handful of pills, then wiped her mouth.

 _It isn't working, Celeste,_ whispered a deep, almost hypnotic voice. Celeste whirled, but saw nothing.

"Shut up," she whispered when Pina got up to return the medicine box to its place. The deep voice laughed. Celeste shuddered.

 _Do you think Pina would mind if I finish off her soup?_ Espy asked, leaning over Pina's bowl.

"Get away from there!" Celeste hissed. The Espeon grinned and did a handstand on the edge of the bowl. _"Stop it!"_

"Stop what?" asked Pina, glancing at Celeste, her eyes now full of worry.

"Nothing. Nothing at all," Celeste muttered. Espy jumped off the bowl and in a series of flips landed at Celeste's side. Celeste tried not to look as Espy reached up and tapped a paw against her shoulder.

"Cellie?" Pina's voice was very soft, very stable, but her hand kept going up to play with the Friend Ball on her necklace. "Cellie, who were you talking to?"

"No one!" Celeste shoved Espy off, who chuckled.

 _Liar, liar, pants on fire…wouldn't it be a good idea if you did that…_ hissed the deep voice. _Look at that nice fire there…_

Celeste covered her heads with her hands, no longer caring what Pina thought. "I can't hear you!"

I _can hear_ you _…_

" _Celeste!"_ Pina jumped up, and reached for her sister. "Celeste, what's wrong?!"

"Nothing! I'm fine! Go away!"

"Right. Right." Pina took a step back, and pulled a cellphone out of her pocket. She hit a speed dial button. "Mom…please…pick up…"

— — — — — —

" _Pina? Pina Piazzi?"_

 _Fourteen-year-old Pina, admiring the shine as light glinted off of all eight badges carefully nestled in their case, glanced up._

" _Are my Pokémon ready?"_

" _Not quite. You have a phone call from your mother, on terminal four."_

" _Thank you," Pina said, and walked over to the phone. She picked up the handle, and leaned it on her right shoulder, pinning it between her ear and shoulder blade._

" _Hi, Mom," she greeted with a smile as she flipped the video feed on. "Why'ja call? To congratulate me? I didn't know you knew I got the Beacon Badge." She lifted up the badge case. "I can go to the Lily of the Valley Conference now!"_

" _Oh. I…about that. I…" There was a catch in her mother's voice. In the video screen, Pina saw her eyes moisten. "I'm…I'm so sorry, honey. But I need you to come home."_

 _Pina's eyes widened, and she dropped the badge case in shock. The badges spilled out and scattered across the floor. "W-what?! But—Mom—I'm—_ the Conference! _It's—you can't be serious!"_

" _I'm sorry, honey, but I need you. It's…Celeste. I can't…she's not well, Pina…"_

" _So she caught a, a, a_ cold _and that means—"_

" _It's worse than a cold, Proserpina."_

 _Pina sat up straight in her chair. Her mother_ never _used her full name. Pina stared hard at the woman's face, and noticed for the first time the worry lines that crisscrossed it, and the fear that lay hidden beneath her blue-eyed gaze. Pina had never seen her mother look so tired in her life._

" _But…Dad—"_

" _Your dad isn't here," her mother sniffed. "I wouldn't be asking you to come back if it wasn't important. You know how much I've always supported you."_

" _I…I know." Pina sighed. "It won't be for long, will it?"_

" _No, of course not. Just until Celeste gets better."_

 _Pina sighed. "Okay. I…guess I could challenge the League next year." She bent down and picked up the dropped badges and case, then lifted them to show her mother. "I won all these before so I can do it again, right?"_

 _Her mother's face exploded into an expression of relief. "Thank you, Pina."_

" _It's okay. It's just for a little while anyway."_

 _But 'a little while' would translate into five horribly turbulent years._

— — — — — —

As she watched her sister start to argue with herself, Pina could only listen to the phone ring.

"C'mon…aw, Mom, you said…"

" _Hello!"_

"Mom! Mom, Celeste's—"

" _Thank you for calling Ceres' Shiny Ranch! I'm sorry I can't take your phone call right now, but please leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can!"_

 _BEEP._

" _ARGH!_ Mom, Celeste's hallucinating again! We're in Eterna Forest! Call me back!" Pina hung up and roughly shoved the phone back into her pocket. She closed her eyes for a moment, then turned to her sister, one hand playing with the Friend Ball necklace nervously. She took a deep breath.

"Celeste?" she said in a soft, calm tone, completely opposite of how she'd sounded on the phone. "Celeste, who's with you right now?"

"I—I—nobody. There's no one here. I don't—there's no one. Because, because, I—shut up! I have a badge! I'm a Pokémon trainer! I don't have to listen to you!" Celeste crouched down on the ground, her hands clamped over her ears.

"Okay, good, I'm glad nobody's here. I'm glad you know that." She carefully walked to her discarded pokéball belt, and snatched the one closest to her hand. "Listen, I'm going to bring out Dashing, okay? And we're going to ride on him and go to that Pokémon Center we passed by a while back, okay? Are you up for that?"

"Go away. Leave me alone _. I said leave me alone!"_

"Dashing!" Pina cried, and threw the pokéball. Out came her prize Rapidash stallion, tossing his head as his diamond hooves crashed sparks in the dirt. "Okay, Celeste, just stay there, I'll come to you. We're just going to leave our things here. Dashing, kneel." The unicorn complied as Pina edged around the fire pit and reached for Celeste's arm. "See, he's all ready for you, Cellie. Don't worry, what you're seeing, _it's not real._ Just let me help you, and you'll be fi—"

But Celeste stared past her shoulder, at something Pina couldn't see. Her eyes widened in fear.

"Celeste! _It isn't real!"_

Celeste turned and fled.

— — — — — —

 _Run, run, as fast as you can._ The voice, deep and hypnotic, sounded amused. _You'll never outrun me…_

 _Keep running! Keep running! I'm right behind!_ shrieked a sharp, metallic voice. Celeste whimpered, but didn't turn around, instead pushing herself into a sprint. Because…it was _them_. And she couldn't let them catch her…

She dodged back and forth, heading deeper and deeper in the forest, heedless of any scratches the bushes and lower branches from overhanging trees gave her. They were nothing, compared to the fiends behind—

"Celeste! Celeste!" something cried, and Celeste heard the pounding of hooves.

No! Even Tony was with them!

"Traitor!" she screamed, darting between the trees to make it difficult for the Ponyta to follow her. It mattered not one whit that the voice calling out was female, and Tony was male. She'd heard much stranger things in her life.

"Celeste, _stop!"_ Tony cried.

 _Yes, stop_ , the deep voice cajoled. _It's been_ such _a long time. We want to say hello._

"Go _away_!" Celeste howled, and plunged on, terrified.

Because the two voices were Zammy and Meta. And if they caught her…

"Cellie! Stop running! _Please!"_ Tony begged behind her, but Celeste ignored him. He was the least of her problems…

Wait. She'd hidden from Zammy and Meta before. Perhaps…

She ducked between another set of trees, then down into a deep, thorn-filled brush where she knew clunky Meta couldn't follow. She crawled deep in, close to the dirt, shivering, ignoring the thorns as they dug into her flesh. She waited to hear Zammy or Meta's taunting, but heard nothing. After a few moments of peace, Celeste heaved a sigh of relief. She lost them….

A monster's silhouette walked into the clearing before her. It was horrible—a perverted centaur, tall, with both a unicorn's head and a woman's torso, its whole body on fire. Celeste cowered and clung to the ground, perfectly still.

"Celeste! Celeste!" the creature yelled. Celeste stayed silent. She'd only just lost Zammy and Meta, she couldn't let this monstrosity get her!

"Celeste! It's Pina! Come out!"

Pina? Celeste stared in shock. No. That couldn't be Pina. Pina wasn't a horse monster. But…but…

Something rustled in the bushes behind the other side of the clearing.

"Cellie, wait!" the monster gasped. Its unicorn head whinnied, and it galloped off in the direction of the rustling. Celeste gave a sigh of relief, but waited until the sound of the centaur's hooves faded away into the distance.

"Okay," she said to herself, crawling out of the bramble. Droplets of blood dribbled from several thorn punctures, but she ignored it. "I need to find a better place to hide—"

"Want to know a _real_ good place to hide?" asked a low, sultry voice behind her. Celeste whirled around, searching for the culprit. A bad Pokémon, like Zammy? Another monster like the centaur? Or perhaps—

"I'm right here," said the voice, amused. Celeste finally saw a womanly figure walk from behind two trees.

She was tall, human-shaped, and sparkled silver in the moonlight. Her shapely legs shone in silvery, intricate designs, and below a black belt a wave of silver cascaded around and down curvy hips like a scaled waterfall. A band of silver wrapped around her large breasts. She lifted her right arm; it glittered with more intricate, silvery jewelry. The other was covered by a silvery scaled sleeve that flared widely at the wrist; however, her hand appeared to only have three digits, and all ended with claws. Three long, sharp leaves protruded from her elbow, piercing through the sleeve easily. And from her back, wrapped around her silvery feet, was…

Celeste stepped back, shaking. This was _another_ monster.

 _Humans_ didn't have Vaporeon tails that waved in the moonlight.

"My name is Neptune," the young woman said, brushing a strand of curly green hair behind her ear to join the rest of her curly mane. "I can help you."

"No you can't," Celeste said, taking another step back. "You're a monster."

The woman sighed. "It's all right, love. You'll change your mind."

She lifted up the perverted hand previously covered by the sleeve. The tips of her claws glowed, and a pile of dust formed in her small, green palm.

"Sleep now," the woman whispered, and blew a pile of powder at Celeste.

 _Sleep Powder! Sleep Powder! Run!_ Espy screamed suddenly. However, it was too late. Celeste collapsed against the ground, her eyes closed.

"Get her into the van," Neptune snapped. A boy in a simple silver tunic, black leggings, and short silver boots dropped out of a tree and picked the girl up. His arms were far more muscular than looked reasonable for a boy his age, and appeared grayish in color. As he picked up the girl, red veins running down his arms became visible. He quickly placed the girl into the back of a van, then glanced at Neptune for further instructions.

"They had Pokémon, I'm sure. You get the others set up. I'll go after their campsite."

The boy nodded. "Yes, Neptune."

— — — — — —

"Celeste! _Celeste!_ Answer me! _CELESTE!"_ Pina screamed into the woods desperately. Her head whipped back and forth, scanning the forest for any sign of her sister. She couldn't stand this. Before if Celeste ran it was on the ranch, and Pina had the help of her mother and the ranchhands to find her. When they had finally found a medicine cocktail that worked, Celeste stopped running entirely. But now the medicines weren't working. And Celeste was running. And Pina was alone…

"Celeste! Come out! It's Pina! Please! I won't hurt you—"

Then she saw the fire.

 _There were no options left. Nothing worked. Until Zammy told her how to get rid of them all…_

" _Celeste! No! Stop!"_ Pina screamed, and kicked Dashing's sides. The Rapidash squealed and charged at the light. He, too, remembered Celeste's attempt at self-immolation…

Dashing arrived at the fire in less than a moment, hooves kicking up sparks in a cloud of dust. Already horrible images were burning in Pina's imagination.

 _The stench of burnt hair and flesh still stank the halls of her memory…_

"Who the hell are you?"

Pina looked down and saw a teenager—perhaps her age, or a little younger—sitting on a sleeping bag next to the fire, wearing a long sleeved white shirt and jeans, his travel bag and pokéball belt next to him. He had lavender hair that was almost (but not quite) shoulder length, and a firm, calm gaze. In his hands was an empty plate, in front of him a frying pan with some sort of stir fry inside.

"I'm—my name is Pina," Pina answered, momentarily befuddled. "Have you seen a girl running around here? She'd be wearing a red dress, has blue hair, kinda short?"

"Haven't seen anything like that," the teenager said firmly. He pulled the frying pan out of the fire, and dropped its contents onto a plate. "Now, d'you mind? I just made dinner."

"I…yes, I do!" Pina wailed. "She's my sister! _She's schizophrenic!_ She'll hurt herself if I can't find her!"

"You should keep looking, then. I'm hungry," the teenager said bluntly.

"She's hallucinating," Pina snapped. "If the voices get to her she'll hurt herself, or worse." She rubbed frustrated tears away from her eyes. "I was supposed to look after her…"

"You didn't do a good job." The boy sighed and ran a hand down his face when he saw Pina's expression. He put down the plate, and stood up. "She's done this before?"

"Yes, but when she ran at home, we had every hand on the ranch looking for her, not just me."

The teen grabbed his pokéball belt. Strapping it around his waist, he pulled one free.

"My Luxio can see through anything," he said, holding the ball. "He'll find your sister, no problem."

"You mean you'll _help?!_ " Pina squealed happily—

Then they heard the roar.

What the roar was, Pina couldn't pin it down. It sort of sounded like the lion-like roar of a Luxray, yet it had the baaing squeal of the sheep-like Ampharos. And both sounded like they were in a little bit of pain.

"What—" Pina began.

"Watch it!" the teen hissed. Pina dismounted quickly, and the two turned toward the new threat. Both watched as the creature stepped into the fire's flickering circle of light.

Pina gasped, and took a step back. Her companion swore under his breath and clutched his pokéball tightly. Both had good reason. The monster before them had the body of a Luxray, the tail of a Seviper, and two heads: one an Ampharos, one a Luxray. The Luxray head growled, and the Ampharos sparked.

"Chimera…" the teen whispered. The monster glared at him, howled, and charged the camp.

"Watch out!" he yelled, and shoved Pina away as he dived to the left. The monster crashed through the fire and tried to slash the young man with its glowing pink snake tail. It reared, and its heavy paws crashed onto the teen's backpack, crushing everything inside. He winced; Pina heard several items snap to pieces. "You're going to pay for that!" he snapped, and threw the pokéball in his hand. He gave Pina a quick glance, then ordered:

"Luxio! Roar!"

"Lux!" the Luxio jumped forward and roared a lion's roar, scaring the monster into retreating a few steps.

"Dashing!" Pina yelled. "Flamethrower!"

Dashing stepped forward and took a deep breath. He then opened his mouth and blew, blasting a beam of fire against the monster. It stumbled back, whining, and the stench of burned fur filled the clearing. Beside her the young man grabbed another pokéball from his belt. As he palmed it, he caught Luxio's eye and jerked his head.

"Again!"

"Dashing, away!" Pina yelled, and Dashing whirled and disappeared just as the Luxio ran up in front of the monster. It roared once more, scaring the monster back another few precious steps.

"Good! Come back!" the boy called, then threw the pokéball in his hand. "Torterra! Your turn!"

"Dashing! Fire Blast!" Pina shouted. Dashing jumped over the newly released Torterra, clearing the Pokémon easily. He took in a deep breath and shot a star-shaped blast of gray fire at the monster, hitting it square across the two heads. Both shrieked in pain. He jumped away just as the boy called out, "Frenzy Plant!"

"Tooooorrrr!" the Torterra cried, and huge brown roots popped out of the ground, pinning the thing to the dirt. It tried to cut the roots with its glowing tail.

"Dashing! Stomp!" Pina cried again. Dashing whinnied, and charged forward as the monster struggled to free itself. He reared once more and, bearing all of his weight into the attack smashed his diamond hooves into the monster's Ampharos head. It screamed in agony. For a moment Pina felt pity for it, until the Luxray head tried to bite Dashing's leg. Dashing danced away just in time for Pina to hear its jaws close with a bone-crushing snap. The teenager shook his head.

"Don't go easy on that thing!" he snapped. "Torterra! Stone Edge!"

For a moment, two rings of blue gathered around the Pokémon, only to turn white when Torterra roared. Huge rocks began to form within the white rings, and Torterra's eyes began to glow.

"Dashing, come back!" Pina yelled, and Dashing dashed to her side in a moment.

" _TOOOR!"_ Torterra screamed. The rocks shot forward, crashing into the monster. It struggled to stand, though this was made more difficult as it was now not only held down by the roots of Frenzy Plant but the boulders from Stone Edge. However, the monster refused to give up. Electricity gathered around the Ampharos' head, and a bolt of lightning shot at Torterra. Torterra simply stood still, and the electricity rooted itself in Torterra's tree-covered back. Torterra roared and shook itself, but showed little damage. Dashing stared at Pina expectantly, and Pina stared at the monster, fingering her Friend Ball necklace nervously. She didn't believe in killing things, even monsters like this; however, if the creature was let loose, it could hurt her, or worse, find and hurt Celeste. She fingered the necklace once again—

Wait.

She plucked the pokéball off of its chain and maximized it. She took a deep breath and, without any fanfare, threw it. It hit the Luxray head on the nose. The monster disappeared in a flash of red, and the web of roots and rocks collapsed without their hostage.

"What—" the teenager beside her began.

"Shhh!" Pina said. Both watched as the Friend Ball rocked once. Twice. Three times.

And clicked.

In hazy, adrenaline-fueled daze, Pina walked forward. She picked up the ball, minimized it, and attached it to her necklace's chain with a soft _click._

"Well, Kurt did tell me to use it for a very special Pokémon," she said softly. "But I don't think this is quite what he meant…"

"Son of a…" the teen said softly—in admiration, Pina realized, not anger. He shook his head, muttering something to himself, then turned to his crushed travel bag. He turned it upside down. A pile of broken Potion bottles, wrinkled clothing, and cracked electronics fell out. He sighed, and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Right." The lavender-haired teen bent down again and grabbed his abandoned purple jacket. He shoved his hand in a pocket, but whatever he pulled out—Pina couldn't quite see what was in his hand—just made him look a little more moody. "Well, we'll just have to find your sister and get to a Pokémon Center, huh?"

"What?"

"Look, if Chimera is here…well, they were after _you_ , not just your sister." He rubbed his head. "And if they knew _I_ was here, well…I think that was an accident, honestly. But if we don't find your sister within fifteen minutes, we're screwed. They already have her."

"Who? Who's they?!" She paused. "And who are you? I never got your name."

"Me?" He paused, then held out his hand. Pina hesitated, then shook it.

"My name's Paul."

— — — — — —

 _Celeste has a disease called 'childhood onset schizophrenia,' which affects about every one in 300,000 children in the US. Normally schizophrenia is triggered in a person's teens or twenties, with specific symptoms, but a child gets hit by the disease very differently. Their positive and negative symptoms are much stronger than a typical adult, with occasionally horrific consequences. Celeste's symptoms faded with medication though, and after several years of observation she was finally allowed to go on a Pokemon journey. Unfortunately those medications are no longer effective._


	2. CHAPTER TWO

_**NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

 _Author's note: Sorry this is late! Work held me up and I couldn't upload yesterday. Darn jobs!_

— — — — — —

CHAPTER TWO

— — — — — —

Celeste woke up in a sterile white room, resting on a soft white bed, with a soft white blanket to cover her. Even the bandages and band-aides all over her arms were white. In fact, the only thing of color was the silver handcuff that held one of her wrists to a rail on the side of the bed, and the bright purple hair of the young woman writing on a clipboard next to her. Her intense focus gave Celeste a moment to study her. This was another sparkly person, with a silver-scaled, bare-shouldered tunic and intricately woven silver arm bands that ran from her elbows to her wrists. A wide black belt held the loose fabric pinched at her waist, and several small remotes dangled from its sides. The dress ended above her knees, met with tall silver boots. The royal purple hair that had caught Celeste's eye was held in a large bun by a silver pin, with tendrils of hair hanging down either side of her face. An Espeon's gem decorated her forehead. She couldn't have been a day over seventeen—and, Celeste noticed, over her heart was stitched a stylized 'N'; bright yellow, and shaped like a lightning bolt, resting atop a gray circle.

The girl looked up and smiled. "What do you think?"

"You're very sparkly," Celeste said without thinking. The girl laughed.

"I suppose I am."

Celeste looked around. "There aren't any monsters here."

"No," the girl said, clearly puzzled. "Were you expecting some?"

Celeste's eyes darted from corner to corner. She remembered last night. That monster girl or the centaur had to be around here somewhere. Or worse…Zammy…

"Persephone? Did you hear me?"

Celeste looked around. Her gaze finally settled on the purple-haired girl.

"Who's Per-see-phony?"

The girl gently grabbed Celeste's chin, and forced Celeste to meet her brilliantly glowing purple eyes.

"You are," she said simply.

— — — — — —

Paul winced as he walked next to the Rapidash. He'd given up riding the thing after too many falls. Clearly riding was in Pina's blood, not his. The search had stalled into a walk, anyway. Pina was afraid of galloping past her sister.

Paul sighed. "Pina, this is pointless. It's been thirty minutes! You need to give up. _She's gone."_

"She's somewhere. She has to be." Pina refused to look at Paul, instead staring down the forest's black shadows.

"Look, you saw your camp! They took _everything._ And all of your Pokémon are _gone_. Pina, I know who did this—"

"I don't care! _I want my sister back!_ "

"I can help you _get her back,_ but this is pointless! These people are _dangerous_! They'll try again if they know we're still here! We need to get back to the Pokémon Center, and more importantly a _phone_ —"

 _RING RING. RING RING._

Both teenagers stared at Pina's hip.

"Oh," Pina said. "I forgot."

Paul glared at her, a look of pure loathing on his face. "You mean you had a phone on you _all this time_ —"

Pina pulled the phone out of her pocket.

"It's my mom," she said softly, picking up the call. She held the phone to her ear, free hand playing with the Friend Ball around her neck. She glanced at Paul nervously, and he shrugged. Paul faintly heard someone yelling over the speakers. Pina winced.

"Celeste? Yeah. Um…I…y'see…Celeste's…Celeste's mi…m-mi-miss—"

— — — — — —

" _Paul, I'm so proud of you!" Reggie cheered over the phone. "Your battles—I was watching you on TV for every one of them! And that Darkrai?! Who could see_ that _coming? That was amazing!"_

" _It was okay," Paul answered, hiding his pleasure at his brother's words. "My Pokémon…did well."_

 _Reggie lifted an eyebrow, but didn't comment. "Are you coming home, or will you stay for the end of the Conference?"_

" _I…think I'll stay," Paul said. "There's someone who promised to battle me during the tournament, and he didn't show up…"_

 _Reggie smiled. "You're_ waiting _for someone? Paul, have you made a_ friend _?"_

" _Shut up," Paul snarled. He looked away from the screen…and quickly looked back at his brother. "I'll talk to you later."_

" _Wait—"_

Click.

 _Paul watched as a rather strange duo walked inside the Pokémon Center and down to Nurse Joy's desk. One was an Officer Jenny, her expression tight and eyes narrowed. The other, a tall man with spikey hair, long brown coat, and serious expression followed, briefcase in hand. The two immediately cozied up to Nurse Joy, blocking the trainers in the lobby from view._

 _Paul quietly got up and walked over to his backpack, which he had (quite luckily) left on the chairs closer to the front desk. As he pretended to shift through the bag, he heard Jenny say, in a low voice,_

" _We need to talk, Joy."_

 _Joy made a face. "Can't it wait? I have so many Pokémon from the tournament to treat—"_

 _The man patted Joy's hand, and pulled something shiny out of his pocket; what it was, Paul couldn't quite tell, but it was vaguely shaped like a shield._

" _This is more important," the man said very softly. "Those missing trainers…"_

 _Joy stared at the badge, then nodded. "All right. Five minutes. Follow me."_

 _Paul's eyes widened._

'Missing trainers' _?_

 _Paul had heard the rumors. Everyone had. That someone was stealing trainers in the night. That you had to keep your Pokémon close because there was someone who'd take them from you. Stupid stuff. They always came around when someone went and did something stupid and disappeared for a few months; the parents always thought it was kidnappers, not their child's own stupidity. Many of them even used it as an excuse to force their children to come home. As a result, most trainers ignored it._

 _But_ he _had been missing for weeks…and he was as seasoned as Paul…_

 _Paul jumped up. Just as the three disappeared into the back room, he raced across the lobby and stuck his foot in the doorway. He saw a few trainers give him strange looks. He glared at them._

 _And went in._

 _He gave a quick look-around—there were plenty of places to hide around here. He quickly settled behind a large, beeping machine. The man glanced at the door, but made no comment. Instead he put his briefcase on a gurney, and opened it._

" _We found something," he said, pulling out some papers and a few photographs. "We have hard evidence. Someone_ is _kidnapping trainers."_

"Kidnapping?!" _Joy's eyes widened. "You mean…oh, no, it's true?"_

 _Paul froze. Kidnapped trainers? No. That was just a rumor overly protective parents used to force their children to come home. It didn't actually_ happen…

 _And yet…and yet…there had been several unexpected dropouts from the Conference this year…including…_

" _Yes," the man answered heavily. "We found someone who managed to escape them, but they took his girlfriend. He won't talk, but he drew…these."_

 _Joy stared at the papers, mouth hanging open._

" _What…? This is…"_

" _These are the people who tried to take him."_

" _That's…not possible. He was seeing things. People…_ can't _…look like this…"_

" _He's traumatized, but a very good artist. His girlfriend was a photographer, and we have these from her camera. They were taking pictures of wild Pokémon before they were jumped."_

 _Joy looked at the photos, squinting. Then she gasped. The man nodded._

" _We believe this is real," Jenny said softly. "Joy, we need your help. We have to keep track of the trainers—where they are, where're they're from…we don't have many leads. But they're disappearing. We have to warn them—and catch whoever is behind this."_

 _Joy bit at her knuckle, then nodded. "All right. Come with me. We need to start calling my family. If this is real…we can't risk it."_

 _Jenny nodded, and put the papers and photographs back into the briefcase. When the man hesitated, Jenny cocked her head._

" _Coming?"_

 _The man smiled. "You go on. You two don't need me."_

" _Or you just want to sleep," Jenny replied, rolling her eyes._

" _Well, I haven't in quite a while."_

 _Joy looked at the man's face, and nodded. "You look exhausted. Take a nap here, it's out of the way. We'll wake you in a little bit."_

" _Thanks, Joy," the man grinned, and sat on the gurney. "You're a love."_

 _Jenny snorted derisively and followed Joy through the second set of doors, happily not noticing Paul as she passed. Paul gave a soft sigh of relief as the doors closed. He just had to wait for the man to fall asleep—_

" _So what did you think of all that?"_

 _Paul froze._

 _The man polished his nails on his coat, and jumped off of the gurney. "Look, I'm not talking to this probably-quite-expensive equipment over here. What did you make of it?"_

 _Paul held his breath. The man might be trying to psych him out. Or…_

 _Well, to be honest, he hadn't been_ that _sneaky when he came in. He was probably lucky the man was the only one who noticed._

 _He stood up, and dusted himself off. "What was I supposed to make of it?"_

 _The man turned, and nodded in approval. "Well, what I make of it is that you know someone who's missing. None of those other trainers cared enough about what we were doing to sneak back here to find out."_

" _Or I could just be nosy. Or a reporter. Can I take a quote? This is all on the record, isn't it?"_

" _Now see, that's just low." The man laughed. "You aren't a reporter. I saw you at the Conference. You're Paul, from Veilstone. Placed what, eighth?"_

" _Fourth," Paul corrected automatically. The man grinned._

" _You trainers. You always keep track of that. Unfortunately, I have to keep track of that too now." He sighed. "My name is Looker."_

 _Paul gave him a long look. "Because you look for things?"_

 _Looker laughed. "Sure. Let's go with that." He bent so his eyes met Paul's. "So, why are you here?"_

 _Paul, still not sure himself, felt no need to answer. Instead, he glared at the man, daring him to look away. After a moment, Looker blinked._

" _Ah." The man stood and began to pace the room. "Well. We've established you know someone who's missing. Don't correct me."_

 _Paul wasn't about to._

" _I'm looking for someone myself. That's why I put myself on this case." The man fell silent, thinking. Then: "You might know him, actually. He was going to enter the Lily of the Valley Conference too. A thirteen year old—black hair, brown eyes, about so high? His name is Ash. Ash Ketchum."_

 _Paul's eyes widened. The man caught his gaze, then nodded and resumed his pacing._

" _I knew him, too. I was going to check on how well he scored after the Conference…and I found out he never entered. Apparently he was seen here, in this Pokémon Center, with his friends, healing their Pokémon, a few days before the Conference started. After they left this building, they disappeared."_

 _Paul gasped. "What?! There has to be_ something _—"_

" _Nothing. They disappeared. Just like the others. And if our source hadn't been able to escape, and warn us…" Looker rubbed at the bridge of his nose, eyes closed. After a moment, he continued. "Something big is going on, Paul. Something a lot bigger than we thought. Something a lot more dangerous. How did you know my conversation involved your friend?"_

" _I…didn't," Paul said slowly. "But you told Joy about missing trainers. And…he's not the sort of person to disappear like this. Especially since we…" He shook his head. "He doesn't run. There_ has _to be a reason he didn't battle me."_

 _The man stopped his pacing, and stood thinking for a minute. Then he smiled. "Clever. You have intuition. I can use that."_

 _Paul gave the man a funny look, which he ignored. Instead he strode forward and faced Paul._

" _This is my card," he said, pulling a business card out of his front pocket. "I can use someone smart in the field. Something bad is happening. You can help us stop it, and find Ash…or you could go home. After all, the Conference has finished for you."_

 _He gave the boy an almost playful salute. "Keep in touch."_

 _He walked out. When Paul ran into the lobby to see where he'd gone, the lobby was empty, barring the few trainers sitting in plastic chairs. They glanced at Paul curiously, then turned back to their conversation._

 _Paul looked at the card, then back at the double doors of the Pokémon Center. It was true, the Conference was over. He could leave, go to a new region, start over. Forget all of it. This wasn't his problem._

 _Paul's hand formed into a fist around the card._

 _No._

 _Ash still owed him a battle. And even if he had to drag Ash out of hell itself, he'd get it. He slipped the crumpled card into his pocket, and grabbed his bag. New regions could wait._

 _It appeared he'd found something new to do._

— — — — — —

Quick as a snake Paul snatched the phone from Pina's trembling hands.

"Celeste's _mighty_ fine Missus—" he gave Pina a look.

"Ceres," Pina whispered.

"Ceres! I'm Pina's new friend Paul. Yes, we're travelling together! And we've just taken care of Celeste and everything is fine! Oh, can we call you back? Celeste is waving to us. She wants to get going. I know you want to talk to her, but kids these days, right? We'll call you just as _soon_ as we can!"

Pina couldn't help but stare. During the conversation Paul's face changed from its sourpuss expression to cheerful and friendly. It was something out of Jekyll and Hyde. Then Paul hung up.

" _Why_ didn't you _tell me_ you had a phone _earlier_?!" he snarled, instantly reverting to his old self. "I could have made this call _then_ and we wouldn't have lost our lead!"

"Lead? What are you talking about…?"

But Paul was already dialing. He held the phone to his ear, tapping his foot impatiently. "Pick up, pick up…" Suddenly his face brightened. "Looker!"

"Looker?" Pina asked. Paul ignored her completely.

"Yeah, it's been a while, _shut up_. They tried to jump us about half an hour ago…Eterna Forest. No, they didn't know it was me, I just happened to—they were after two others…I kept one of them safe. But the other…"

Pina tuned out, unwilling to hear more. Besides…'Looker'…

She'd heard that before, hadn't she? Once?

She stroked Dashing's neck anxiously. The Pokémon whinnied, and bumped his nose against her shoulder. Thirty minutes ago, the world made sense. Now, thirty minutes later, everything was a mess. And ghosts were returning out of distant memory…

Paul hesitated, then poked Pina in the shoulder. "Hey. He wants to talk to you."

Pina took the phone shakily. "Hello?"

"Pina! Hello!" cried a cheerful voice from the other end of the line. "I'm Looker. I've heard that you've met Paul. Sorry to hear that."

Pina smiled faintly. "Yes, well, I couldn't help it."

"Don't worry, he's like this to everyone. Don't worry about him."

Pina frowned. "I'm not. I'm worried about my little sister."

"Ah. Yes." Looker cleared his throat; he was clearly uncomfortable. "About her. She's…not in a good situation." His tone shifted to a light, almost cheerful tone. "But because of you, we might be closer to finding her than we ever were before!"

"Me? What do you mean?"

"Chimera. Paul says you two worked together to take it down, and you captured it."

Pina fingered the Friend Ball around her neck. "I…yes, I did."

"Good! Now, if you could just give it to Paul—"

Something in Pina snapped. "Looker," she said calmly, "if you do not tell me what just happened to me and my sister _right now,_ I'm going to hang up this phone and find Celeste on my own!"

There was a long silence. Paul smirked; apparently he found her fire amusing.

"You…don't want to hear this," Looker replied heavily.

"Try me," Pina answered grimly.

— — — — — —

" _Are you going to the Conference?"_

" _Yeah, I just got registered!"_

" _Awesome! I'm gonna kick your butt though, you know that, right?"_

" _Ha! You think so? I'll take you right now!"_

 _Pina sighed as she watched the two trainers chatting, both with huge grins on their faces. She quietly polished her badges._

" _I'll just come back next year," she whispered to herself. She looked up as a commercial for the Conference flashed across the large television in the lobby, then looked away. Then, something more interesting: the news. They were covering some sort of trial now—apparently some big gang had just been taken down by the police. Pina was glad she hadn't run into them; they sounded insane._

 _A trio settled in front of the television—a teenager with spikey brown hair, a younger boy with black hair and a baseball cap, and a blue-haired girl that reminded her of Celeste, though of course Celeste was years younger. They all watched the screen, apparently engrossed._

" _That's Mars!" the girl said. "That orange doesn't suit her."_

" _I wonder if they're going to talk about what happened at the power plant," the younger boy said._

" _Doubt it. I think Looker's covering that up, or at least trying to. He wouldn't want anyone else to get the same idea…"_

 _The girl shuddered. The boy paused, then patted her hand. "No one knows about what happened but us and Looker," he said comfortingly._

Sounds interesting, though, _Pina thought._

" _Ash? Dawn? Proserpina? Your Pokémon are all healed up!" Nurse Joy called from the counter. The black-haired boy and the blue-haired girl got up and took their pokéballs from the nurse, thanking her politely; Pina followed them to the counter a moment later, still studying the blue-haired girl._

She really _does_ look like Celeste, _Pina thought._ Weird.

" _You guys want to walk around a bit?" the boy asked. The girl brightened up._

" _Yeah! We didn't really get to explore yet!"_

 _Pina clipped her pokéballs to her belt, keeping Dashing's out in her hand so she could release him as soon as she got outside. As she grabbed her own bag, she watched as the three gathered their belongings. With a cheerful wave and good-bye to Nurse Joy, the trio left. Pina took a deep breath, and stood up to follow them. At the door, she paused and closed her eyes._

" _Just a year," she murmured, taking a deep breath. "Just a year. That's it. Just a year. It won't be very long. Just. A. Year." She opened her eyes, pushed the door open, and stepped outside._

 _Pina glanced up and down the street, confused. Odd. The street was empty. Those three trainers couldn't walk_ that _fast, could they?_

 _Pina sighed and threw Dashing's pokéball. Perhaps they, like she, had alternate transportation. The unicorn reared as it appeared in a flash of red._

" _Let's get out of here," Pina muttered. Dashing whinnied in agreement. She quickly saddled the Rapidash and swung herself aboard. From her elevated height, she gave one last look for the trio, though she wasn't quite sure why._

 _She shook her head. This was silly, and she had places to go. She clucked her tongue, and gently kicked Dashing's sides. Dashing snorted, and began to run. Pina disappeared in a cloud of dust, leaving the empty street behind._

 _She would never know that she was the last person to see Brock, Dawn, and Ash Ketchum alive._

— — — — — —

"Persephone?"

Persephone blinked. For some reason her head hurt. No, hurt wasn't the right word. _Burned_. She raised her hand to try and massage the headache away, to no avail. She turned her head, trying to take in her location. She was in a white room, on a white bed, with a white blanket covering her. She looked down and saw she was wearing a silver-scaled tunic resting over long black sleeves; she couldn't see the rest due to the blanket, but it felt like some sort of leggings, and boots. There was also a symbol directly over her heart; a gray circle, with a bright yellow lightning-bolt 'N' smack in the middle of it. She winced as another wave of pain crashed against her brain, and closed her eyes. Without the light, the headache lessened slightly, but not by much.

"Persephone?"

Persephone groaned, and covered her ears with her hands. If light was bad, sound was worse.

Something grabbed her right hand, and pulled it down from her ear.

"Persephone, open your eyes. I need you to look at me."

Persephone cracked open an eye. A purple-haired girl stared at her intensely. She felt very familiar, though Persephone couldn't place how. She lowered her other hand.

"S-sorry," Persephone said humbly. "My head hurts."

"That happens," the girl said sympathetically. "It'll go away soon. Do you know who I am?"

Persephone looked at her for a moment, then shook her head. The girl smiled.

"I'm Venus. Your officer. But you can think of me as…yes…as your big sister."

Persephone smiled. She _liked_ her big sister. Her big sister always looked out for her.

 _If that's your sister, I'm a Meowth,_ a strange voice said dryly. Persephone looked down. At the edge of her bed lay a Pokémon, curled in a ball. When it saw her staring, it uncurled itself and stretched, yawning widely.

"What are you?" she asked, confused. It sort of looked like a tiny Espeon, only its tail had three prongs instead of two and its deep purple body was covered with neon green tabby stripes. It also bore a toothy smile.

Venus frowned. "What do you mean? I'm your sister."

"Not you," Persephone answered. "You…"

Venus gave her an odd look, then shook her head. "You must be confused. That happens sometimes, too."

"Is it normal for Espeons to have stripes?"

 _I'm a special Espeon._

"No, it isn't," Venus answered. "But that's not important. Don't you want to know why you're here?"

Persephone stopped looking at the Espeon and turned to Venus. Venus smiled.

"Your father's brought you here!"

"My…father?" Persephone cocked her head. She had a father? She was sure that was likely, but it felt like a foreign word, like she hadn't seen him in a very long time. But that couldn't be right, if he brought her to this place. But…

"Yes. Your father, Lord Sol—the most wonderful, kindest, gentlest genius in the world." Venus' eyes began to glow with passion, and a faint light; instinctively, Persephone looked down to avoid her gaze. "He's our father, because he _created_ us."

"Really?"

 _Unless his name's Jove Piazzi, he ain't your father,_ the Espeon said, her tail lashing against the blanket, her ears flat against her head. She looked, for lack of a better word, extremely annoyed.

"Lord Sol loves us," Venus continued. "He loves us so much that he helped us, he remade us! He'll remake you too, Persephone!" Her eyes pulsed a fervent purple; Persephone, head aching, broke her gaze once again. "And through Lord Sol's genius, we will take and remake the whole world! No longer will we be bound by the limitations of our weak, human bodies! Instead, we can be something greater! Don't you want to do that, Persephone?"

Persephone nodded. She wanted to agree with her big sister, even if the teenager's glowing eyes scared her a little.

"Say it with me, Persephone!" Venus cried, her eyes and Espeon gem glowing brilliantly as passion overtook her. "Lord Sol loves you! He will protect you! He is our father, our maker, our _god!"_

Persephone gave a weak smile. "Lord Sol—"

 _Is a load of horse-hockey!_

" _Is a load of horse-hockey!"_

Venus gasped. Actual tears formed in her eyes. Persephone wondered why, until she realized what had come out of her mouth.

"Wait—I didn't—"

"I misunderstood you, Persephone," Venus said, biting her lip. "You didn't mean it, did you?"

"No! The Espeon said that, not me!"

"The…Espeon…?"

Persephone pointed at the creature sitting on the edge of the bed. The Espeon smirked, and waved a paw.

"There isn't anything there," Venus said softly.

"Yes there is! The Espeon! It made me say that!"

The Espeon's tail twitched, this time in amusement. Venus sighed, and shook her head.

"I went too heavy on you," she said. "This is all my fault."

"No, Venus, see—"

"This just means you won't get to meet the rest of your family for a little while. Don't worry. I'll fix everything."

"But _Venus,_ it's right _there—"_

Venus caught her chin and looked into her eyes.

"You just go to sleep," she said. "When you wake up, you'll feel much better…and you'll have your own room! Won't that be nice?"

Persephone was given no time to respond. Within seconds she fell asleep. Venus lay her gently back on the bed before leaving the room.

"Put her in room 205," she ordered the guard standing outside the door. "I'll deal with her later."

— — — — — —

Pina clutched the phone tightly, her face pale.

"You…aren't serious…" she whispered. Paul sighed and stretched.

"He's very serious," he said.

"This is hard to bear, I know," Looker said gravely. "That's why I need you to give Chimera to Paul. He can bring it to me, and we'll take care of it from there."

Pina automatically reached up to play with the Friend Ball, then slowly unclipped it from its necklace. She maximized it and stared at it, apparently hypnotized by the orange circle and four red lines that ran down its green lid.

"Paul won't bring this thing to you," she said in a quiet voice. "I will. And then we'll get my sister back."

— — — — — —


	3. CHAPTER THREE

_**NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

 _Author's note: I may switch uploading this to Saturdays. Fridays are tough. Blegh._

— — — — — —

CHAPTER THREE

— — — — — —

Persephone woke up in a white room, on a white bed, covered with a white blanket, completely alone. She stretched out her arms and climbed out of the bed, glancing curiously about. Besides the bed the room was unfurnished, and nothing decorated the walls, beyond a framed picture—a stylized, yellow, lightning-shaped N atop a gray circle. The ceiling was quite high above her, and the room seemed large. She looked at her body. She was still dressed in the silver tunic, draped over a black long-sleeved shirt and black leggings, and silver boots covered her feet. She glanced around the room once more, already bored, and this time noticed a large vent on one wall, and a large white door with a golden knob. Persephone walked over to it and tried to open the door.

It was locked.

 _You're finally awake,_ a soft voice purred. _About time. I was getting bored._

" _You!"_ Persephone snarled, whirling to face her personal tormenter. "You're the reason I'm in here! You made me say those things! I could be with my sister right now!"

The Espeon smiled. _Yeah, you could. If you weren't here._

"That's what I mean! And you ruined it!"

 _Celeste, don't be like that. I'm helping you._

Persephone paused. "Who's Celeste?"

 _You are, silly._ The Espeon jumped onto the bed and began a series of cartwheels.

"I'm not silly. My name's Persephone." Persephone stuck out her tongue.

 _No, it isn't._

"You don't know anything! You got me in trouble!"

The Espeon grinned a Cheshire-cat grin. _Yes._

Persephone glared. "And?"

The creature licked a green-striped paw demurely, then looked up at her. _You were saying something, Celeste?_

" _Argh!_ You're _impossible_ _!"_ Persephone picked up the pillow and threw it at the Espeon, but she dodged it nimbly, dancing along the edge of the bed as she did so. She looked so silly that Persephone couldn't hold back a smile.

 _That's better._ The Espeon flipped onto her front paws. _Look, I can do a handstand with one paw!_

Persephone giggled. The creature looked absolutely ridiculous, with her long, three-pronged tail waving in the air as she tried so hard to keep her balance. When she leaned too far and tumbled off the bed headfirst, Persephone laughed. "What is _your_ name?"

 _What would you call me?_

"Well, you're an Espeon…" Persephone scratched her head, then shrugged. "Espy?"

The Espeon smiled.

 _Got it in one, Celeste. There's hope for you yet._

"My name is _Persephone_!"

The Espeon merely flicked her tail and explored the room, sniffing the floor curiously. Persephone sighed, and sat back down onto the bed. There was nothing to _do_ here, except talk to Espy some more. And she didn't want to do that! She _wanted_ to see her sister. But…

Persephone heard the click of a lock opening, and the door swung open. Persephone smiled and jumped up, excited to see her sister at last. Instead she saw a tall, tan young man with spikey brown hair and narrow eyes. He wore a tight, sleeveless, silvery tunic over black fitted pants and clownishly large black boots. His arms had unattached silver sleeves trailing from his elbows to his wrists. She cocked her head; she couldn't see much of his left hand due to the sleeves, but...his fingers looked blue—or orange?

He stared at her, pale and slack jawed, far more taken aback by her than she was by him.

" _Lu—Luna?!"_

Persephone frowned. "Luna? I'm _Persephone_."

He shook his head slightly, blinking rapidly. "Ah—sorry. You…" Then he coughed, remembering that he was supposed to be the one in charge. "My name's Mercury. I'm an officer, like Venus. I've brought you dinner."

Persephone smiled and looked at the tray nestled in the young man's hands. A nice, fat sandwich, a container of milk, and some fruit. It looked delicious.

"Thank you," she said, reaching for the tray. Mercury pulled it away.

"Lu…Persephone, I need to talk to you about Lord Sol. Venus told me you were having trouble understanding how important he is. And how important _we_ are to _him._ Once you understand, you can help us—all of us— _save the world!_ "

Persephone looked longingly at the tray as her stomach rumbled. She was ready to say anything just to get to that sandwich.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say mean things. It was Espy who made me say that."

 _I'm telling you the truth,_ Espy whined. Persephone frowned.

" _Go away,"_ the girl mouthed. The Espeon didn't listen. Instead, she jumped onto the dinner tray, tapping the container of milk with her paw. Persephone stifled a sigh and ignored her.

"Did you say something?" asked Mercury as Espy jumped from the tray onto his shoulder. Persephone shook her head.

"I was talking to Espy. She's being bad."

Persephone saw something move in the corner of her eye. It couldn't be Espy. Espy was in front of her, dancing on the young man's head. For some reason she shivered, and glanced around the room, looking for the movement.

A faint laugh. Persephone edged closer to the door.

Mercury sighed. "Usually this sort of thing wears off by now...look, whatever 'Espy' is, it isn't real. Lord Sol, however, _is_ , and he is to us as Earth is to the Sun. That's why we work together, Persephone. Together, as a Team—"

 _Hello, Celeste,_ the scary thing said. Its voice, deep and dark, oozed in leering darkness. It knew it had her cornered. She looked back and forth wildly; where was it hiding?!

Espy stopped dancing. For once she did not look amused. _Oh dear. Zammy._ _When did_ you _get out?_

"G-ge-get it away!" Persephone stuttered, backing into a wall. The creature strutted forward. It was a giant Alakazam, but instead of the usual neutral tan, its face was blood red, with the rest of its body patched together in varying shades of dull black and scabby brown. And, instead of spoons, its grimy hands clung to bloody, razor-sharp knives. Persephone whimpered, eyes wide with horror.

Mercury stared at her, baffled. "What's the matter? Are you still seeing things? Look, it isn't real, okay?" To himself he muttered, "Venus, you _really_ need to be more careful…"

Persephone gaped at the young man. How could he stay still? The monster was right next to him, but he did nothing!

"Persephone?"

There was nothing for it. She had to _run_.

 _Celeste!_ Espy yelled, jumping behind Mercury. Persephone followed her, barreling past the young man and under his arm. The dinner tray fell from his hands and its contents crashed against the floor, the plate shattering against the ground in a million shards of ceramic. She paid not one ounce of attention to this, instead running through the doorway and into a hallway. She dashed up the hall, and heard the Alakazam cackle behind her—and a metallic clang began to follow. Persephone didn't waste time looking back; there was no point. Bad things were behind, a way out was in front. Hopefully. She dodged around various kids dressed in outfits similar to hers, ignoring their cries as she pushed them out of the way. They didn't matter. What mattered was getting away from the monsters behind her. If this strange, curving hallway ever ended…

Suddenly she ran smack into a tall, curvaceous young woman, and fell back against the floor. She stared up, and saw a curly mass of green hair. It felt predatory, and familiar. The woman's eyes widened slightly, then narrowed.

 _It's the lady who stole you!_ Espy gasped. _Run! Run!_

" _Neptune!_ Knock her out! _"_ a young man's voice yelled behind her. It wasn't the Alakazam or the metal clang, but it didn't matter. It—

"Good night, love," Neptune said. She lifted her arm, and the flared sleeve wrinkled to show that the three sharp leaves embedded in it were actually attached to a thin, green arm. She held out a clawed, three-fingered paw, and from nowhere a pile of powder appeared in her palm. She calmly blew the dust into Persephone's face. Persephone tried to shove herself upright to run, but while doing so she took a deep breath, and instantly passed out.

— — — — — —

 _Pina approached the ranch at a slow walk, delaying her arrival for as long as possible. She still didn't feel ready for home…not after the past year. The battles. The gym leaders. Her new friends. Even the camping. And it all would've cumulated with the chance to win the Championship at the Conference. Perhaps if her mother had called_ after _the Conference, this wouldn't have hurt so much. But now…_

 _Pina played with the Friend Ball necklace around her neck. She wasn't sure what she was going to say to her parents when she got home… she certainly had nothing nice to say right now. Pina glared at Dashing's mane._

" _Celeste better be sick as a dog to deserve this!" she growled. Dashing snorted, and Pina deflated. "I know, I know. But…why does she need_ me? _Can't Dad handle it?"_

 _Dashing snorted as the arch over the ranch's entrance came into view. Pina looked up, and blinked. Odd. Before it had said 'Piazzi Ranch'. Now it just said 'Ceres'._

" _Huh. I wonder why they changed that…"_

" _Go away!" Pina heard someone yell. A light voice, female, young._

" _Celeste?" she called, and kicked Dashing's sides. Dashing broke into a trot and entered the ranch, just as a little girl with long blue hair raced out of the house._

" _NO! No no no no no!" she screamed, dashing away from the house as fast as her legs could take her._

" _Celeste! Get back here!" Pina heard Ceres cry from inside the house._

She's throwing a tantrum?! _Pina thought, her brow furrowed._

" _Mom!" she yelled. "Mom, I'm here! You said Celeste was_ sick, _not_ fussy _—"_

" _Pina, you're here!" Ceres cried, running onto the porch. "Thank goodness! Go after her!"_

" _Mom, you lied, you said Celeste was sick!"_

" _She is! Go get her, Pina! Go!"_

 _Pina groaned. Some homecoming. She turned Dashing's head towards Celeste, and clucked her tongue. Dashing's pace quickened from a trot to a run. Dashing was a Piazzi Ranch thoroughbred, the blood of champions ran through his veins. He'd catch up to her in seconds…_

 _The girl was nowhere to be seen._

" _Oh, no…" Ceres whispered. "Pina, I'll look in the corral. You check the stable!"_

 _Pina sighed. Stupid little sister. Stupid bratty annoying useless little sister. The stable was farther from the house than the corral, so Ceres would probably find Celeste there…_

" _Well, Mom told us to go to the stable," Pina said glumly to Dashing. "Not that she'll be there. She can't run_ that _fast on those tiny little legs."_

 _It was right when she entered the stable that she smelled the smoke._

— — — — — —

"Pina?"

Pina jerked awake, and shook her head to knock the sleepiness away. She tried to remember where she was; a quick look around showed her she was in the lobby of a Pokémon Center, sitting in a hard plastic chair. She looked up to see Paul standing next to her, alongside a brown-haired, middle age man in a long tan trench coat.

"Who—"

"My name's Looker," the man said, and thrust out his hand. Pina grasped it, and held back a gasp at the strength of his grip. She stood up, wringing her hand. Looker didn't notice.

"I'm a plainclothes detective, but Paul and I have been working on this case for quite a while." He smiled, though she noticed he checked to make sure the lobby was empty before continuing. "Paul told me you've captured Chimera?"

"Yes," Pina answered, touching the Friend Ball around her neck. "But someone raided our camp. They took everything—everything." Tears gathered in her eyes, then trickled down her face. "They took my sister…"

Looker coughed, and looked around once again. It was too late for any trainers to be awake, and even Nurse Joy had gone to sleep. The place was completely silent.

"Let's talk," Looker said. Pina wiped her eyes and sat down with the two by the lobby's coffee table. Pina fingered the Friend Ball. Looker thought for a moment, then took a huge breath and released it.

"As I tried to explain over the phone…these people are…"

"Maniacs," Paul cut in. Pina snorted.

"You said that. And you said they've been kidnapping trainers for a long time. But you never explained what they do afterward!"

"There is a group that calls themselves Team Nebula," Looker said. "We don't know much about them. Whatever they're doing, they're extremely secretive about it. But…" Looker sighed. "They've been kidnapping trainers for years. And once someone is taken…" He looked downcast, then cheered up again. "But you might have given us a lead!"

"A lead?"

"We know they do experiments on Pokémon. We've run into quite a few of their creations over the years. But the one you caught—well done, by the way, we didn't know that was possible—it's the oldest we know of. We call it Chimera because of its appearance."

Pina unclipped the pokéball from its clasp and looked at it. "Yes, Paul said. But…why are they making monsters? Why are they kidnapping people?"

"Excellent questions," Looker replied. "But, for now, that's neither here nor there. Pina, if we get a look at Chimera, we may be able to find the missing trainers!"

"How?"

"If we're lucky, it's smart enough to know where it came from," Looker said. "If not, it might have materials in its fur we can look for—pollen, dust—anything that could tell us a location." He made a supplicating gesture with his hands. "Will you let us borrow it for a couple of weeks?"

"I…" she paused. "Wait, two weeks? I have to wait two weeks?! _I need to find Celeste right now!_ "

"We've been looking for years and we haven't had any luck yet," Paul snapped. "You letting us take that thing to a lab might finally get us somewhere. And all that stuff they do takes time."

"I…" Pina looked down. "I just need to find my sister as soon as possible. The longer she isn't on her medicines…the worse it gets."

"Then we need to get Chimera to the lab," Looker said urgently. "We've narrowed down their headquarters to a handful of locations, but never found any evidence…for all we know, they have several small bases, or one large one, or both. Chimera could at least tell us which location is the real base."

"All right." Pina sighed, and threw the pokéball. The monster appeared in a flash of red.

"Okay, you—" she started, but was shocked into silence as the giant Luxray head rubbed itself against her body affectionately. Instinctively she tickled it, and it let out a strange sort of purr. The Ampharos head snorted with irritation and slammed the Luxray out of the way in an attempt to be petted as well.

"Wow. Um…it really likes me," Pina said, amazed.

"That's good!" Looker said. "Maybe—"

But he never finished the sentence. Chimera turned around, and the Luxray head snarled as the Ampharos sparked with electricity. It clearly didn't like Looker at all, and when Paul tried to step forward, both heads snapped at him. He stepped back quickly, drawing his hand back.

"Why…?"

"Friend Ball," Pina realized. "I'm its friend. But you guys…you said you have past history with it?"

"Lots," Paul muttered, and the creature hissed.

"Why don't you come with us to the lab?" Looker asked weakly. "You'll be able to manage it better than we could, it seems…"

" _No way._ I'm going to look for Celeste!"

"Where?" Paul snapped. "Eterna? Sunyshore? Floaroma? Veilstone? Oreburgh? Because I'm also looking for someone, and I still haven't found _him._ You think two weeks is long? _Try four years!_ "

Pina averted her eyes and toyed with the pokéball in her hand. "When you put it like that…"

Chimera apparently sensed its new trainer's unease. It rubbed its Luxray head against her, and she began to scratch it again. She looked at the monster as the Ampharos baaed, then sighed.

"If this is how I have to find Celeste…okay."

"Good! I have a small plane outside. We can fly to headquarters. You…may want to put Chimera back in its pokéball."

Pina recalled Chimera, then checked to make sure she had Dashing's pokéball with her. He was the only Pokémon she had now, besides the monster. He was now her only reminder of home…and Celeste. She clutched Dashing's pokéball tightly, and a determined expression crossed her face.

"All right. Let's get going!"

— — — — — —

Persephone woke up in another white room, though this was noticeably different than the last. She also was dressed in different clothes. Before she had worn some sort of uniform; now she wore white pants and a white long-sleeved shirt with the now familiar 'N' patch over her heart. She was also barefoot. She looked around; this room was much larger than the last, though still painted white, with a bright light high overhead. In it were different furnishings, if one could call them furnishings. A thin foam pad with a pillow and blanket resting atop decorated one corner of the room, and large partition protecting a hole in the ground in the other, with a roll of toilet paper beside. There also was a tiny sink, but both the sink and the partition looked out of place—like they had been added to the room long after it was built. There was also no knob on the door, only a long mail slot along the ground.

The most important thing, however, was that Espy, the Alakazam, and the clanking thing where nowhere to be found. Persephone heaved a sigh of relief. She was finally alone.

A few minutes later, after exploring every inch of the room for things to do, she found herself wishing Espy would come back. At least she, though annoying, was company. The girl sat against the wall and pressed her face against her knees. She looked at the air vent beside her. It was large, and a soft breeze blew through it. That was it. She groaned. There was nothing to _do_ in this place, and Persephone bored easily. She started to think even the Alakazam would be better than being alone. The silence made her want to scream…however, she restrained herself with a sigh.

And heard someone else sigh, too. Persephone blinked. Was this another Pokémon?

"Hello?" she called loudly, looking for whatever had made noise. "Who are you? Hello?"

There was no answer. Persephone bit her lip, and her shoulders drooped.

 _Well, it wasn't me._

Persephone jumped, and saw Espy curled up on the pad, eyes closed. "You! Where did _you_ come from?"

 _I've been here a while, Celeste,_

"No you haven't! Did you sneak through the slot? How did you fit? You're too big!"

 _I didn't have to sneak through the slot, Celeste,_ the creature yawned. _I can walk through walls._

"No you can't," Persephone answered crossly. "Pokémon can't walk through walls. And _that's not my name._ "

 _Whatever you say, Celeste._ Espy smirked.

"That's _it_ —" Persephone grabbed at the pillow and threw it at the Espeon, but she dodged it easily, and started to laugh. Persephone glared at her.

"I'm not talking to you anymore," she snarled, crossing her arms and facing the vent. "I'm not going to talk to you until _you call me my right name!_ "

 _I am, Celeste._

"I CAN'T HEAR YOU!"

 _Oh yes you can._

"Oh, go away," Persephone snarled.

 _Are you sure you want that?_

Persephone hesitated, then shook her head. "No."

 _Perhaps I'll tell you a story…_

"A story! Yes!"

 _You won't like it._

Persephone would listen to anything right now, and a story sounded perfect. "I will."

 _All right…_

— — — — — —

 _Celeste sat at her mother's table as the woman lay out a tasty-looking lunch. All her favorites—but Celeste couldn't bring herself to care. She had been silent for days, and saw no point in speaking, even if her mother gave her pained looks and unhappy encouragement. There was_ _no point. None. And when her mother laid out a huge slab of chocolate cake—Celeste's favorite—Celeste merely watched, face blank._

"Please, _Celeste, eat," her mother begged. "Please."_

 _Celeste didn't move._

" _Your sister will be home soon. Isn't that nice?"_

 _Celeste said nothing. She tried to feel interested, she really did, but it felt like she was in a fog, a thick, lonely fog that covered everything. She didn't respond, and stared at the cake._

" _Celeste, why don't we go for a ride? Tony misses you."_

 _Tony. Vague memories swirled in her head. She liked Tony. Tony didn't expect her to_ talk _. She liked that about him very much—_

— — — — — —

"Who's Tony?" Celeste asked. Espy frowned.

 _I'm not sure. Stop interrupting me. I'm trying to remember._

"Remember what? You said this was a story."

 _Yes. You won't like the ending._

Persephone snorted. "It's not like it's about _me_. Keep going!"

— — — — — —

 _Celeste grunted. Her mother clapped her hands happily and pulled her out of her seat._

" _I'll ride Opal right next to you, okay?"_

 _Celeste waited. It didn't really matter what her mother did. Celeste had decided she liked Tony, so seeing him was possible. Probably._

Hello, Celeste…

 _Celeste's eyes widened, and her stupor began to fade away. That was not her mother's voice. That was a different voice. Deep, dripping with hatred. She looked around nervously, but saw nothing._

— — — — — —

Persephone began to feel uneasy. A dark voice? She knew about that. Had Celeste met such a creature as well? She felt a little better, knowing someone else knew the voice, but unhappy, because it was a terrifying thing to know, and she wouldn't wish it on anyone.

 _You look unhappy. I told you that you wouldn't like this story. Do you want me to stop?_

Persephone shook her head. Espy smiled slightly, and continued.

— — — — — —

 _Her mother bent and stared into Celeste's eyes. She was growing to recognize that look._

" _Celeste, it isn't real," she said quickly, grabbing the girl's shoulders. Celeste didn't respond, eyes wide. "It isn't real!"_

She's lying…they all lie, don't they…?

 _Where was the voice coming from? She felt the hairs on the back of her neck raise. It was here. It was here._ It was here…

Hello, Celeste, _it said, right into her ear. She screamed._

" _Celeste! No! It isn't real! Sweetie, it isn't real!"_

You should run, Celeste. _In the corner of her eye, she saw it appear. A giant Alakazam, with a face the color of blood—_

— — — — — —

" _Stop!"_ Persephone screamed.

Espy paused. _I told you. You wouldn't like this story._

Persephone gulped, and shook her head. "I—I—got a little scared, that's all. I d-don't like Alakazams." The girl's face was white.

 _Do you want me to stop?_

"No! What happened to her? What did she do?"

 _You should know…but all right._

— — — — — —

 _Celeste raced out of the house, the monster laughing as he followed. Her mother cried out uselessly, but Celeste didn't hear. In the span of a few minutes her world had gone from dull and cloudy to fiery and frightening. There was no goal she needed to reach. She merely had to run._

 _The creature laughed, and she pushed herself into a terrified sprint. A loud clanking sound began to thump behind her, but she didn't look. She vaguely noticed the stable in front of her. She dashed in, and hid in a stall._

I see you…

" _Go away!" Celeste curled into a ball, her face buried under her arm._

 _But she knew it was there._

 _Waiting._

 _The creature smirked._ I'll never go away. Unless…

 _Celeste waited uneasily. There was a way out of this madness?_

 _The creature pointed at a pile of straw, and waved at the Ponytas in their stalls around him._

Purify yourself.

 _Celeste, shaking, looked up. What he was saying…only someone insane would do a thing like that…_

 _But she knew she was not sane. And she would do anything to get rid of the voice._

 _She grabbed the straw, forced a Ponyta's head down to light it, and…_

— — — — — —

" _I don't want to hear anymore!"_ Persephone shrieked, and struck at the Espeon. Espy dodged it easily, then glared at Persephone, her ears flat against her head.

 _I told you. I did. I_ told _you that you wouldn't like it._

"But…" Persephone gulped, then took a breath. "Why…why did she…"

 _You should know, Celeste._

Persephone glared, and made a fist. "That's not my name! I'm not the girl in the story! I'm me!" She growled, and clapped her hands over her ears. "Shut up! I don't care what you say! Go away!"

The room was silent. Unnoticed, unheard, Persephone faced the wall, and curled into a ball. Nothing answered when she began to sob.

— — — — — —


	4. CHAPTER FOUR

13

 _ **NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

CHAPTER FOUR

— — — — — —

"This is it," Looker said proudly. Pina looked around and sighed. The small, dinky one story building before her had broken windows everywhere, and the front lawn was buried under weeds and trash. A broken chain link fence surrounded the property, with several holes cut into it where others had decided climbing was too hard. She shook her head just a bit. Clearly Looker was insane, as this place was nothing—less than nothing. It looked like it should be condemned. There was even a sign on the front door saying so.

"Not all is as it seems," Looker said, and they walked around the building to see the back. There was a huge hole cut into the fence, and another small yard filled with trash and weeds. The back door, however, was slightly ajar.

"Let's go," Looker said, and ducked through the hole. Pina hesitated for a second.

"The sign said—" she began, but Paul shook his head and grinned.

"Just trust us," he said, and crawled through the fence to walk into the building behind Looker. Pina sighed, but followed. Inside the place was just as trashed as the outside, with dust and dirt everywhere, accompanied by torn furniture and knocked over chairs. To her right was an elevator with a key hole for a button next to it. Pina stared at it for a moment, puzzled. A one story building with an _elevator_?

She watched as Looker walked over to it and slipped a key into the keyhole. When he turned it, there was a _ping!_ and the doors opened.

"Why is there an—" Pina began, but Looker only took her hand and led her inside. The elevator's interior was night and day from its dirty setting. The light above was bright and cheerful, and the walls were covered with friendly brown wood and warm reddish paint. Large, colorful tiles decorated the floor.

"One of our detectives felt creative," Looker said as she studied her surroundings. Pina cocked her head.

"One of?"

The elevator shot down, and Pina felt her ears pop. Then the doors opened. Pina's eyes widened. Before her was a giant room, clean and filled with desks, chairs, and people in various attire and age. She saw quite a lot of both male and female trainers, some Celeste's age, some her own, and several men and women who were clearly in their forties or fifties. There were even a few grandparents in the crowd. Every single one of them was either on a phone or a computer, though some discussed printed sheets with each other. Pina watched as an older woman gently led a shell-shocked trainer to a chair. He couldn't have been more than ten, but his eyes were blank and there were several bandages on his arms and face. Pina reached for her necklace and began to play with the Friend Ball nervously.

"Like I said…not all is as it seems," Looker said. Paul grinned, apparently amused at the shocked look on Pina's face. "Welcome to Looker Detective Agency."

"These are not detectives," Pina replied. Paul shrugged.

"These are all people looking for someone. And they're from all over the world. Nebula kidnaps trainers all over Sinnoh, doesn't matter whether they're natives or from other regions. When Looker finds someone who's met Nebula, or lost someone to them…well, we come here."

Pina looked at him, then the people in the room. The room was packed, and there was a hallway at the end that some men and women in lab coats were entering or leaving. She watched as the woman tried to coax a few words out of the young trainer on the chair. However, he ignored her, only moving to look away when she spoke. There were several other young trainers, some talking to the detectives, some staring at the floor. When Pina tried to make a head count, she lost track halfway though. The sound of people talking kept distracting her. Her hand gripped the Friend Ball tightly.

"All of them?" she asked softly. Looker nodded, then looked around himself.

"Everyone!" he yelled. The talking instantly stopped, and all the heads looked up. "Any news?"

A young man stepped forward. "I spoke with the Nurse Joy who takes care of Oreburgh," he said, a paper in his hand. "Two more have disappeared. Teenagers this time."

The woman next to the quiet trainer stood up. "I think this trainer here—Vincent—he actually saw a Nebula member take his friends. He's not ready to talk to us about it, though."

"Give him time," Paul said, an uncharacteristically soft look on his face. "It always takes people time."

Another young man stood up. "The fighting between Oreburgh and Floromara trainers is getting worse. They won't even talk to each other now. And a lot of trainers have taken up wearing colored bandanas around their arms to show which city they're from. They're ganging up on each other."

"Cynthia said she's getting reports of Veilstone and Sunyshore trainers fighting too," an older woman said. "And I spoke with my son—he said the Mayor of Veilstone is acting _very_ oddly, as are his subordinates."

"I spoke with my son as well," volunteered a grandma. "Hearthome is continuing to draft Pokémon trainers for their military, and almost all of the older representatives have been voted out for younger ones. He says he's expecting to be voted out very soon."

Pina stood shock still, trying to absorb the information these people were giving.

"I…I didn't know any of this!" she said finally. "I mean, at the Pokémon Centers we saw some kids wearing the same color hats, but…"

"Which Centers?" someone asked, curious. "We could use that—"

"Everyone!" Looker yelled. "This is Pina. She was attacked last night, along with Paul."

A series of gasps crossed the room. And then, all at once:

"What happened?"

"Did Nebula kidnap someone with you?"

"Where was this?"

"Did you see any Team Nebula members?"

"How—"

"GUYS!" Paul roared. "We were both attacked. But she caught Chimera!"

Another series of gasps.

"How did you—"

"I didn't even know it _could_ be caught—"

"When did you—"

"Melisa!" Looker yelled, and a determined woman in a lab coat elbowed her way to the front of the crowd. She was short, with her blonde hair pulled back into a sharp ponytail. Her blue eyes were focused, and narrowed.

"I imagine you want to try to use it to find their base?"

Looker nodded. "Hopefully we can get some information out of it. Pina will help you. It attacks everyone but her."

Melisa rubbed at the bridge of her nose, then beckoned to Pina.

"The more time we waste talking, the more time we lose finding them," she said. "Let's go."

— — — — — —

"Good morning!"

Persephone cracked open an eye, then closed it again. She had only fallen asleep what felt like a minute ago, but the lights never shut off here, so she had no idea what time it was. She felt absolutely exhausted. Finally she rolled over and pushed herself up to see Venus standing before her, a huge smile on her face and a large bowl of oatmeal on a tray. Both orange juice and milk were next to the plate in cups.

"I've brought breakfast," Venus said cheerfully. Persephone's stomach growled, but she didn't move.

"Do I get to _eat_ it this time?" she snapped. Venus' smile faltered.

"I'm sorry about that. Mercury gets a little enthusiastic about Lord Sol. We all do, of course…but you won't be seeing him anymore! It's just you and me. And we're not going to just be sisters—we're going to be _best friends!_ " Her eyes flashed a painful purple; Persephone dropped her gaze. A headache was already starting to form. Venus placed the tray before Persephone, apparently ignoring the break in eye contact.

"I realized that we just needed to _explain_ things to you," she said. Persephone ignored her and grabbed the bowl of oatmeal, scarfing it down before Venus could change her mind. "No one's just sat down and explained things, have they?"

Persephone shook her head, still chewing. Venus sat down, tucking her legs neatly underneath her.

"Persephone, you will be part of a _great undertaking_ ," she started as the girl finished the oatmeal and moved on to the milk. Venus' eyes were glowing, but Persephone was too focused on eating to notice. "You are so lucky to be here! We are going to _change the world! All_ of us, thanks to Lord Sol's genius, have been transformed! And you will be transformed too. After all, you've had the glorious luck to join Team Nebula!"

"Team Nebula?" Persephone mumbled between bites. She downed her orange juice, then sighed. The headache was getting worse…

"Oh, yes. Isn't it a lovely name? It's a name for _us!"_

"Us?" Persephone settled against the wall and rubbed at her head, holding back a groan. The pain was far past anything she'd felt before; it now felt like her brain was trying to split in half.

Venus sighed, and took Persephone's hand away from her forehead. Instead she lifted the girl's chin, and stared directly into her eyes.

"Persephone, once you understand this, you can meet with the rest of your family!" Venus said happily. "You must understand how wonderful our father Lord Sol is. He is the smartest, most majestic, most amazing, most _loving_ person on the _planet_. Do you know why?" She paused, and relaxed her grip on Persephone's chin. Persephone quickly looked down; eye contact hurt. "Persephone, it's because he takes our poor, pitiful bodies and turns them into _art!_ He'll take you and reshape you into something beyond your wildest _dreams_ …Persephone, because of him we can be _more_ than human. We're part of the chosen race who will _inherit this world!"_

"Sounds great," Persephone said weakly. Her head throbbed now, and the pain was beyond distracting. She closed her eyes and began to massage her head. Venus sighed.

"Persephone, you must _look_ at me. This is important!"

Persephone, still rubbing her head, slowly opened her eyes. A dosage of the brilliant white light from above only made the headache worse. She tried not to whimper, and closed her eyes again.

Venus apparently didn't notice. "Persephone, this is the best part...now that you've joined us, you will have a family with hundreds of brothers and sisters! And of course your _favorite_ sister, _me_." Venus smiled.

"Yes," Persephone answered, eyes still closed. Venus clapped her hands together.

"Persephone, you're my _little sister_ now, and I promise that I and the rest of your family will look out for you for _the rest of your life!_ All you need to do is accept our mission!"

"What's that?" Persephone tried to look away, but Venus' gaze held her paralyzed.

"Lord Sol wants to save us!" Venus cried. "The Chosen have already accepted Lord Sol into their heart. And with them we will rid the world of chaos and insanity!"

 _Uh oh,_ said a voice not her own. Persephone looked up, and saw Espy sitting on Venus' head. She jumped down, brow furrowed. _This doesn't sound good._

"You may be right," Persephone whispered. Despite Venus' smile and happy demeanor, everything about the young woman made Persephone's hair stand on end. Which didn't make sense, as Venus was her sister…and little sisters shouldn't be afraid of big sisters.

Venus smiled. "Oh, you _do_ agree with me! I knew you would. We're going to do such wonderful things, Persephone! We _must_ release Sinnoh from Chaos' grasp! It will take work, of course. But with the Chosen…" Venus' eyes and the Espeon gem embedded in her forehead glowed brightly. "Lord Sol will guide us to a new future! He will protect all of us!"

 _Sounds awful,_ Espy said. Persephone blinked. What did? It sounded fine to her. Lord Sol seemed like a nice enough person if Venus loved him so much. Then she winced. The headache was truly splitting now. She wished Venus would quiet down a bit, as even the slightest sounds made her head burn in pain.

Venus grabbed Persephone's chin once more and pushed her hands away, forcing her to continue staring into those purple eyes. "In fact—"

Persephone didn't even hear what Venus said next, because she saw something far more terrifying than the young woman cheerfully gabbing before her. Behind Venus stood the giant Alakazam, with his blood red face and shining knives…

Persephone froze. Perhaps if she didn't move, the creature wouldn't see her.

 _Oh, Celeste, do you think you can get away that easily?_ he cooed, and rubbed the knives together, creating a slashing, screeching sound that hurt Persephone's ears.

"Leave me alone," Persephone breathed. The Alakazam laughed. It was not nice.

 _I don't think so,_ he said, and took a step forward.

" _Leave me alone!"_ Persephone screeched, and pushed Venus out of the way to hide behind the partition. The voice laughed, and she curled into a tight ball.

"Persephone—"

— _Celeste—_

" _GO AWAY!"_ Persephone howled. " _GO AWAY!_ _LEAVE ME ALONE!"_

"I—" Venus gently shook Persephone's shoulder, but Persephone ducked her head within her arms and rolled up into a tight ball. Venus took a step back.

"Persephone—" she started, but then the Alakazam started laughing again. Persephone could hear it take another step toward her. And she had _nowhere to go_.

" _Go away!"_ she screamed again. _"DON'T TOUCH ME!"_

The Alakazam merely laughed again, and slashed his knives.

Persephone _screamed_.

"I—I—" Venus held up her hands, and backed away. "Okay, Persephone. W-we'll…we'll talk again…soon." She reached for her belt and found a small black remote. She pressed a green button, and with a beep the door opened. Venus shot through it and had it closed before Persephone could even think to get up to run. The door beeped twice, then locked itself with a loud _CLICK_. Persephone, still curled in a ball, waited and waited, listening for the Alakazam's advancement. However, there was no noise beyond her panicked breathing. After a while, she uncurled, glancing around the room worriedly. She was alone. She sighed in relief. After that surge of adrenaline, she felt exhausted…

"You okay, kid?"

Persephone's eyes widened. The voice was a warm tenor, softly spoken, a little scratchy—but more importantly, utterly unknown. Her head whipped back and forth, looking for the source of the noise, but saw nothing.

"Who are you?" she asked warily. Just because the voice couldn't be seen didn't mean it wasn't there—and waiting to harm her.

The voice laughed. "Who are _you_ , kid? You're sure giving Eris trouble."

Suddenly Espy appeared, sniffing at the vent.

 _Interesting,_ she said.

"What is?"

"You are…oh, wait." There was a pause. "You're talking to yourself again, aren't you?"

"I'm not talking to myself, I'm talking to—oh, never mind." She sighed. She _knew_ Espy was real. Why didn't anyone else realize that? Still, that could be ignored. What was more important was finding the source of the voice. "Where are you? _What_ are you?"

A pause. Then: "As human as you, kid. Sorry about not talking earlier." Persephone looked around once more for the source, and saw Espy pawing at the vent. When she leaned close, the voice became stronger. "I was just waiting to see if you were insane or not. It's good, you're pretty nuts. No one will believe you if you say you're talking to me."

"I'm not nuts!"

The voice—young man, it sounded like, but who could know?—laughed. It was a nice sound, loud and infectious. Persephone smiled a little, then remembered she was angry at him and frowned again.

"I said the same, once," the voice said, amused. "I was wrong. Anyway…"

 _Ask him what his name is,_ Espy prompted, pawing at her sleeve. Persephone sighed.

"What's your name?"

Another pause. "What's yours?"

Persephone glared at the vent. The voice was annoyingly elusive. Still, he didn't call her Celeste. Not like the other creatures. So…

"I'm—"

— _Celeste—_

"—Celeste—no! Stop interrupting, Espy!"

" _Celeste?"_ The voice sounded shocked. "Your—your name is _Celeste?!"_

Persephone glared at Espy, who sat licking a paw, unperturbed.

"No. Espy said that. I'm Persephone."

"Persephone is a _code name_ ," the voice snapped. "There's been at _least_ one Persephone before you. I _remember_ her. But 'Celeste'…there's never been anyone called 'Celeste'… _you know your real name!"_

Persephone had had about enough of all this name business. "I do," she snapped. "It's Persephone."

The voice groaned in frustration. "Are you serious? You know your real name and you won't use it? No one here knows their real name! We—they don't even know how _old_ they are! How the—" The voice paused, trying to get his composure. "You have something very rare…Celeste," he said finally. "I don't know who Espy is, but you should thank them."

Espy preened. _Ha! See?_ He _knows the value of—_

"Oh, be quiet," Persephone snapped, voice lowered. She then glared at the vent.

"I told you my name," she said, louder. "What's yours?"

"I'm—" the voice hesitated. "Honestly, I don't know. They gave me a code name when I arrived here. I forgot my real one." There was a sigh. "You forget a lot of stuff around here. That's why I practice remembering."

" _Practice_ remembering? What's hard about that? I remember things just fine!"

"Oh, yes." His voice turned sarcastic. "How old are you?"

"I…" Persephone frowned, wracking her brain for an answer—which, for some reason, was not forthcoming. "I'm…"

 _Twelve,_ Espy said. Persephone glared at her.

"I didn't need _your_ help to know that!"

 _Whatever you say, Celeste._

"My name isn't—"

"Fine, fine, whatever," the voice sighed. "I'm…" He hesitated again, then said, "Phobos."

Persephone cocked her head. "Phobos? That's a weird name."

"It's not my name," Phobos snapped. "I told you. It's a code name. If I could remember my _real_ name I'd use it." He sighed. "I heard you talking to Eris. You must be getting under her skin for her to be working this hard."

"Eris…? Do you mean Venus?"

"That's what she calls herself," Phobos said, though his voice was tinged with anger as he said it. Persephone smiled.

"You mean my sister! She's nice! She's trying to help me!"

Phobos snorted. "She's not trying to help you, and she isn't your sister. You might have one, but she certainly isn't it."

 _Hah! I like this guy!_ Espy crowed. He _knows what's going on_ —

"Oh, don't you start," Persephone growled.

"Fine," Phobos answered peevishly. "I guess it's to be expected. Eris has gotten very good at her job, unfortunately."

 _Shhhhkt. Beep beep! CLICK._

Persephone looked up. That was the sound the door made when it had closed, so…but no. Her door was still locked tight. And now Phobos was silent.

"I can't _believe_ it!" Venus yelled. Persephone jumped. She had gotten so used to quiet Phobos that Venus' loud voice startled her.

"Oh, today is just _terrible_ , Phobos!" There was a clatter as Venus put something on the ground. "It's been _awful._ Just awful! There's this new recruit and— _ugh!"_

"What's the matter?" Phobos asked, though his voice was muffed. He was probably eating, just like how Venus' visit had started with Persephone. "Did someone fight back?"

"Phobos, _no one_ fights back. But this one…I had _just_ started telling her _all_ about us, and then she started _screaming_!"

"Did you scare her?" There was a bit of a laugh in his voice.

Venus snorted. "I didn't say anything scary! I was just telling her about Lord Sol—"

"Eris, he _is_ scary."

"Enough out of you," Venus growled. "I am _not_ willing to argue about him today."

Phobos sighed. "Then what do you want to argue about?"

"Oh, shush!" There was no talking for a moment, but there was the sound of shifting fabric and Venus' boots clanking against the floor. Venus sighed. "I'm sorry. Can I sit down?"

"Be my guest."

"I just don't know what to do, Phobos," Venus said. The boot clanking silenced; she had probably sat down. She sounded quite frustrated. "She—she's _different_ from the others. I can't get a hold on her. Every time I start, something happens."

"You could try leaving her alone."

Venus snorted. "I can't do that. She doesn't understand how wonderful Lord Sol is! Usually everyone understands after just one talk, but _her_ …" She sighed. "She's almost as bad as you."

"Thank you," Phobos answered dryly.

"You _know_ what I mean." She sighed. "I wish you would just accept him, Phobos. Maybe then—"

"Stop," he said sharply. "Just stop, Eris."

A sharp intake of breath. "Well, _fine_. I won't go where I'm not wanted."

Persephone blinked. Venus honestly sounded hurt. She wondered why. Venus was nothing but smiles when she spoke to Persephone. Yet with Phobos…

Fabric shifting. Someone moving?

"Eris, no," Phobos said softly. "You're _always_ …" he trailed off.

"Always…?" Now her voice was filled with hope. Celeste began to feel sorry for her. It felt like this was the real Venus—not the eternally happy person who came to visit, but someone with emotions…no, not just that. Someone who truly cared about someone else.

Phobos didn't answer.

Persephone bit her knuckle. Something told her she couldn't say anything, or attract attention to herself. But now they were quiet! What was going on? Was he okay? If only she could see—!

 _Want me to check? I can walk through walls, after all._ Espy smiled, and her tail twitched.

Persephone glared at Espy. This was no time to make jokes. This was no time to make _noise_. She could only hope Venus hadn't heard the little Espeon speak. Then again, no one had heard Espy before, so…

"Look. I brought you some new books." Venus sighed. "And I checked on Raichu for you."

"You did?" Phobos said, and his voice had a hint of longing in it. "Is he all right? He's not…not…"

"No. He's doing just fine."

Phobos sighed in relief. "Thank God."

"Don't _worry,"_ Venus said, though she sounded a little peeved. "I look out for you. Even when you're being Mr. Prickles about it."

Phobos laughed. It sounded nice. "Thanks, Eris."

Something beeped, and Venus sighed. "I have to go," she said. There was a clanking of boots; she was probably standing up. "Do you want me to take these other books back with me?"

"Yeah, I finished them all. Thanks for bringing new ones."

"Of course. I'll be back soon, okay?"

"Can't wait," Phobos answered wryly.

"Me neither," Venus said, too softly for Phobos to hear. There was the familiar _Shhhhkt. Beep beep! CLICK_ of a door closing.

Phobos let out a breath. So did Persephone.

"Phobos…Venus—"

"I don't want to talk about it." There was a finality in his voice that told Persephone the subject was more than closed—it was in a cement block in the ocean, never to rise. "You're _really_ bugging her, though," he added cheerfully. "Good job on that."

Persephone looked away from the vent. "I guess."

"No, rea— _auugh!_ "

Persephone's eyes widened. "Phobos?!" There was no answer, except for a very soft sound—a whimper.

" _Phobos!"_

"I'm…okay," he gasped after a few minutes. "S-sorry."

"What happened?!"

"I get—I get headaches sometimes."

Persephone thought about her own headaches. "Like when Venus talks to me?"

"Um…no, that'll only happen when she's around. These are a little different. But don't worry. It just hurts for a few minutes and then it goes away."

"It sounded like it hurt a _lot_."

Phobos chuckled. "It does. But it doesn't last very long, and I'm tough. I can handle it."

"You should tell Venus. Maybe she'll—"

" _No,"_ he snapped. "And don't you tell her, either." He paused. "Actually, don't mention me at all. And I won't mention you. As far as they know, no one can communicate between rooms. This is…special."

"How come?"

Phobos paused, then sighed. "Let me rest a bit, okay? My head is still hurting a little."

Persephone nodded, then remembered the wall.

"Okay. Sleep well, Phobos."

"You too…" In a short while, Persephone heard a light snore, mixed occasionally with a whimper, or a gasp. Persephone sighed. Well, if he was asleep, she might as well try to sleep too.

"G'night," she mumbled, and, curling onto her side to face the vent, she draped an arm across her eyes, blocking the light. Somehow, slowly, she fell asleep.

— — — — — —

"Here you go…Chimera," Pina said. "This will help you sleep. Okay?"

The creature mewed and bumped its Luxray head against her chest, nearly knocking her down. Pina quickly took a spray bottle and sprayed the liquid into the creature's face. As the Luxray head began to droop, she sprayed the Ampharos. The body slumped as both heads started to snore.

"Wow," one of the lab techs said softly, clearly amazed. Pina wondered if he had met Chimera previously, or if someone he knew had.

"Let's get to work," Melisa said sharply. "We don't have much time."

Immediately the lab techs swarmed the creature, pulling free tufts of fur, swabbing its paws for dirt, even reaching into its mouths and ears, trying to cover every base possible. Pina sighed, pokéball in hand, waiting to recall the beast when they were done.

"How long will it take to process all this?" she asked as Melisa passed by.

"As quickly as we can," was the hurried answer. "But I can't promise a time. I wish I could. Believe me. But…" Melisa waved her hands in a helpless gesture. "Hopefully we can at least narrow down which city they've hidden their little hive in soon. _Then_ we can _really_ start moving on this."

"Okay," Pina replied with a sigh. She turned and walked over to Paul, who had sat down on a plastic chair, watching the hurried lab techs swarm the monster. He looked quite pensive.

"What are you thinking?" she asked, sitting next to him. He looked up.

"I'm thinking once Melisa figures out which city that thing's from, we grab Looker's Jeep and see if your monster can find its way home." He sighed. "It's a long shot, but…"

Pina grinned. "I was thinking the same thing. Let's do it!"

— — — — — —


	5. CHAPTER FIVE

14

 _ **NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

CHAPTER FIVE

— — — — — —

"—but that got 406 _really_ mad, so she hit Dysnomia with a double Thunder attack!" Phobos laughed. Persephone giggled. His laughter really _was_ nice to listen to, when he meant it. "She sulked for _days_. Mostly because she couldn't get her hair to curl properly—it looked like a huge afro!" He laughed again. Persephone grinned.

"Another! Another!"

He paused. "All right… _if_ you say your name is Celeste."

Persephone glared at the vent. "Phobos…"

"No name, no story."

Persephone sighed. " _Fine._ My name is Celeste."

"Didn't catch that. Bad ears. What?"

"My name is Celeste."

"Sorry?"

" _MY NAME IS CELESTE!"_

"Heard it that time," Phobos answered cheerfully. Persephone glared again. Both Phobos _and_ Espy kept insisting her name was Celeste, and it annoyed the heck out of her. It also annoyed her that every time she said it, it felt more and more right, and Persephone seemed more and more wrong. Because, well, that didn't make sense. Despite what Phobos said, Cel—Persephone was sure her sister wouldn't lie to her. She sighed, and shook her head.

"Story," she commanded.

"Right, right. So, a few days after that—"

— — — — — —

Pina tapped her foot impatiently. The plush leather chair she sat in was starting to get sticky from sweat, despite the air conditioning. Every now and then she reached to play with the Friend Ball around her neck, only to remember the lab technicians had taken it away. She watched the door swing open and shut, until finally a man in a heavy brown coat walked out the door, a file of papers under his arm. Pina jumped to her feet.

"When are they going to be _done_ , Looker?!" she snapped. Looker smiled, or at least tried to.

"They're almost finished," he said in a comforting voice. "Trust me."

"You said that a _week_ ago!" Pina stomped her foot in frustration, not caring if it looked childish. "I could be looking for Celeste right now, not sitting in a _glorified waiting room_!"

The others, busy around their computers and phone calls, momentarily looked over in Pina's direction. Looker met their gaze and they returned to work.

"I'm sorry, I really am," he said. "And I would be out there myself if I could. But honestly _this_ is all we have so far, and it isn't much."

"Give me," she snapped, and grabbed the folder. She read each paper, or at least tried to. Most of it was in a gibberish that only the technicians could understand.

"What…what does that mean?" she asked, pointing to a page.

"It's a list of pollens that were found it its coat," Looker answered. "We were hoping there would be something unique we could trace, but it's only helped us narrow it down to somewhere between Floraroma Town and Oreburgh."

"And this?"

"Dirt in its paws," he answered. "They must drive it in a truck, because we didn't find much. Just the dirt from Eterna Forest…but that's where you caught it." He gave a comforting smile. "Pina, just give us a few more days and we can narrow it down to _exactly_ where they are. Melisa is _very_ good at her job. Can you trust me, Pina? I swear I'll have it back to you in a few days."

Pina narrowed her eyes, inwardly seething. "One day. One day, and then you give it back to me. It's—it's _my_ monster."

"I'll let her know," he answered. "Just be a little patient, Pina. We'll find them."

"You don't know what Celeste can do when she's not medicated," Pina snapped. "There is no _time_ to be patient. _Tomorrow."_

"Understood." Looker nodded his head to her and darted back into the laboratory. Pina once again reached for the Friend Ball that wasn't there.

 _Hang on a little longer, little sister,_ she thought. _I'm coming._

— — — — — —

"—which is why Dysnomia avoids 406 like the _plague,"_ Phobos continued cheerfully. To his utter surprise, instead of expected laughter, he heard crying.

"Celeste…? Hey, Celeste, are you okay?"

No answer, just sobs.

"Celeste?" Now Phobos sounded worried. "C'mon, this isn't funny. Are you all right?"

Persephone wanted to answer, but a wall blocked her thoughts. Everything felt heavy, and dark. She leaned against the wall as her sobbing subsided. She closed her eyes, and fell silent. Talking took too much effort.

" _Celeste!"_

"Don't feel right," Persephone said softly.

"Are you sick?"

Persephone decided not to answer. Why everything felt so heavy, she didn't know, but she did know that she had absolutely no desire to do anything.

"Celeste…" Phobos hesitated. "I'll—okay. I'll, um, I'll tell you another story. Would you like that? Celeste?"

Persephone sighed. "Okay."

— — — — — —

Several hours later, Phobos snored in his sleep, though said snores were periodically punctuated by whimpers or gasps. Persephone had a feeling he was having a nightmare, and a part of her wanted to wake him up, but the rest thought it'd be real nice to just enjoy the quiet. Phobos could talk up a rather exhausting storm when he wanted to.

Persephone sighed. She _was_ starting to feel better, or at least lighter, but…

 _Hello, Celeste._

Persephone jumped. "Wh-who's there?" she cried. The voice laughed, and an icy feeling dripped all over her, waking her up entirely. She _knew_ that sound. Into her field of vision stepped the giant Alakazam—the one Espy called Zammy—his wide white smile a stark contrast against his blood red face. Grimy paws held razor-sharp knives high in the air. He smirked.

 _Celeste…_

Persephone screamed and backed away until she was trapped into a corner. The creature strode forward, and Persephone shrieked in fear. She held up her arms over her head. As the knives descended, she began to cry. Phobos woke with a gasp.

"Wha—Celeste, what's wrong?!"

"He's coming!" she cried, her hands over her eyes.

Phobos took a deep breath. "Celeste— _FIGHT BACK!"_

Both girl and monster paused, momentarily befuddled. Persephone lowered her arms slightly.

"Celeste!" Phobos yelled. "Fight back! _FIGHT BACK!"_

"I—I can't!" she whimpered. The Alakazam smirked, and raised his knives. "He'll hurt me!"

"If he can touch you, _you_ can touch _him_!" Phobos snarled. "Celeste— _fight back!"_

The Alakazam paused, disoriented. At Cele—Persephone's hesitation, his smile returned.

 _Celeste…_

" _LEAVE. ME. ALONE!"_ Celeste—yes, Celeste—screamed, and shoved the monster away, slamming him across the room. He fell through the door, and disappeared. Celeste huddled against the wall, unmoving.

"Are you okay?" Phobos asked after a moment's rest. Celeste took in a deep breath, and released it.

"I…yeah. I think I am." She smiled slowly. "I—I pushed him, Phobos. I pushed him through the door!"

"That's my girl," Phobos answered, a smile in his voice. "I knew you could do it."

" _I_ didn't," Celeste answered. "How come—how come you said to fight back? Everyone around here doesn't even think Zammy's real!"

"If you think he's real, that's enough for me," Phobos said. She could practically _hear_ the shrug that accompanied it. "Besides, you should never let anyone push you around. Whether they're real or not. Always fight back."

Celeste bit her lip, then nodded. "Yeah. You're right." Then: "You _were_ right. My name is Celeste."

"Yes, it is." He sounded quite happy. "This is why I like you. You catch on quick."

"Quick?"

"Oh, yes." He sighed. "Don't worry about it. We should be celebrating. Celeste, you did great!"

"I…thanks, Phobos." She sighed.

"Do you need a break?"

Celeste bit her lip, thinking. Finally she came to a decision.

"Phobos?"

"Yeah?"

"My name's Celeste. But yours isn't Phobos."

"True."

"So…can I give you a name? That way we both have real names."

Phobos chuckled. "I like that logic. Sure. What will you name me?"

Celeste frowned in thought, then smiled.

"Pheebee!"

"' _Pheebee'_?"

"You don't like it?"

"Uh…no, it's fine." He laughed. "Pheebee. Well, I'll definitely know it's you when you say it."

Celeste smiled. "Yeah. So, Pheebee…"

Suddenly the teen hissed in pain. Celeste's eyes widened.

"Pheebee! Your head again?"

There was a gasp for a reply. Celeste bit her lip and tried to stick her fingers through the vent. "I—I'm here…"

After a few minutes, Pheebee panted, "I'm okay." He stuck his fingers through the vent as well, and the tips of their fingers touched. It was always an odd sensation; his fingernails felt _pointed._ But that didn't matter. He always did this when the pain was over, which meant he was okay.

Celeste frowned. "Pheebee…"

"Yes?"

"You tell me all sorts of stories. But…who are these people? You don't tell me about how you met them. Or who they even are."

There was a long, long pause. Then, finally: "I don't…" he took a deep breath. "I don't usually talk about that."

"Oh." Celeste couldn't hide the disappointment in her voice. "Okay."

Apparently Pheebee heard her loud and clear. He gave the tiniest sigh.

"All…all right," he said finally, his voice even softer and lower than normal. "I guess...if it'll make you feel better."

He was quiet for a long time. Celeste thought he fell asleep, but then, with a deep breath, he began.

"Okay…so…when I was brought here…"

— — — — — —

 _He awoke to whiteness. He slowly pushed himself up, and realized he had been laying down on a bed—a white bed, with white sheets, surrounded by white walls and a white floor. Sitting on the foot of the bed was a middle-aged bald woman with piercing green eyes. She wore a long tunic-dress, mostly covered with sparkling silver sequins, though her long sleeves and leggings under the dress were black, as were the ankle boots. He looked further, and saw a lightning-bolt shaped 'N' on a grey circle on her chest._

" _Phobos! You're awake,"_

 _The boy blinked. "That's not my name."_

 _The woman stared at him, forcing him to meet her gaze. "Of course that's your name, Phobos. It's the only name you've ever known. How could it_ not _be your name?"_

 _The boy bit his lip. "I—no, it's…"_

 _The woman stared at him again, only now a vein visibly pulsed on her forehead. "Your name is Phobos…Phobos."_

" _Oh," Phobos mumbled. "Right."_

 _The woman smiled widely. "And my name is Persephone. We are going to be very good friends, Phobos—"_

— — — — — —

"Persephone!" Celeste whispered.

 _I guess that's the other Persephone he mentioned,_ Espy said. Celeste jumped, and saw Espy sitting next to her.

"How did you get in here?" she whispered.

Espy curled into a ball, the tips of her three pronged tail touching her nose. _I keep telling you. I walk through walls._

"Well don't make any noise," Celeste ordered. Espy smirked; Celeste ignored her, and quickly realigned her ear with the vent. Pheebee had somehow become even quieter than normal while telling the tale, and it took serious effort to hear him. The creature only flicked her tail in annoyance and curled into an even tighter ball.

— — — — — —

— _had a horrible headache. "Okay…wait." Something was nagging at him, digging down inside. It had to do with…_

" _Friends!" Phobos burst out. Persephone looked confused. "My—my friends," he continued lamely. "Where are they?"_

 _Persephone looked very surprised. "They're just down the hall, Phobos. I'm glad you're excited to meet them…"_

 _Phobos tried to jump out of the bed, but instead crashed to the floor. Persephone helped him up, smiling a little bit._

" _Don't worry, everyone gets disoriented after taking their medicine," she said "It'll wear off in a moment."_

" _Medicine?" Phobos asked, confused. "I'm not sick."_

" _Oh, you were. But you aren't now! Thanks to Lord Sol's genius."_

 _He frowned. "Lord…Sol?"_

 _Persephone's grin widened, and she glowed with happiness. Phobos squinted; he wasn't wrong. Her eyes gleamed, and the vein on her forehead throbbed. "Lord Sol," she said. "He is the most wonderful, kindest, gentlest genius in the world. Just knowing his name makes you feel better, doesn't it?"_

" _Oh. Yes," he answered, averting his gaze. He didn't like how he got a headache every time the woman said something._

" _He is your_ father, _Phobos," she continued happily. "He will take you and remake you, as he has me! You will be more than human, now that he has decided to make you one of us! Won't that be wonderful?"_

 _Phobos looked away. For some reason, what she was saying didn't make sense, which didn't make sense, because everything she said made sense. He rubbed his head. This was confusing…_

" _Come along, Phobos," Persephone said. "You should be able to stand now. And you really_ must _meet your friends." She reached for his hand and pulled him through the doorway, where a slim girl stood outside waiting._

 _The girl was petite, with loose, waist-length purple hair, and dressed in the same silver dress as Persephone. However, her outfit had no sleeves, and she had thigh-high silver boots instead of Persephone's plain black ankles. She also had several thin silver bracelets on each wrist—and in the center of her chest, another lightning-bolt shaped 'N' over a gray circle. She smiled nervously when she caught Phobos' gaze. He couldn't help but be amazed at the vibrant hue of her royal purple eyes._

" _This is Eris, Phobos," Persephone said. She placed their hands together. Phobos looked down, and tried to pull his away. It felt awkward to hold hands with someone he'd just met._

 _Persephone stooped slightly and stared into Phobos' eyes, vein throbbing. "You love her more than your own life," she said—or ordered. She turned to Eris and stared into her eyes as well. "You love him, are devoted to him, Eris. Such a strong, poetic love, so beautiful!"_

 _Phobos looked down at the hand holding his, and realized for the first time how small and delicate it was. Eris squeezed his hand, and the two looked at each other, blushing slightly._

" _Come along, you lovebirds," Persephone said, face victorious. Phobos blushed red and pulled his hand away._

" _I—we just met—we're not—"_

" _Honestly, Phobos," Persephone snapped, glaring brilliantly at Phobos. Eris simply looked hurt. "I've never had this much trouble with anyone. I just don't understand how you can deny your love of this girl."_

" _No, I just…" Now his head was_ truly _aching. "I…"_

 _Persephone grabbed his chin, her eyes bright and shimmering as the vein on her forehead pulsed. "Phobos, look at me. No,_ look _at me. That's better. Lord Sol himself wants you two to love each other very much. And you do, Phobos. You love Eris. Deeply."_

 _Phobos flinched, and rubbed his head. The pain was burning now; it felt like his head would split in half. However, when he turned and saw Eris, he felt a rosy glow. A slow smile spread across his face, and he held the girl's hand, squeezing it just a little. Eris blushed and planted a light kiss on his cheek._

" _No idea what came over me," he said as Eris leaned her head on his shoulder—_

— — — — — — _-_

Espy's eyes snapped open and she uncurled from her ball. _Wait. Wait wait wait. Did he just say Persephone made him fall in_ love _with_ Venus _?_ The Espeon grinned and shifted her position; she now sat on her paws like a sphinx. _This is finally getting_ good!

"Shut _up_ , Espy," Celeste growled. "You'll _distract_ him!"

 _He can't hear me. You know that._

"Well, you're distracting _me_ ," the girl snapped. "Be quiet!"

 _Don't have to be mean about it,_ the creature grumbled. _Anyway, he's still talking._

"Shoot!" She turned back to the vent. "Don't interrupt again!" she hissed softly, and settled back into place, hoping she hadn't missed much.

— — — — — —

"— _nomia and Deimos," Persephone introduced. Phobos looked at the two before him. The young woman, tall with a huge mane of curly green hair and a smirk on her face stood curled in the arms of a tall young man. He had tanned skin, spikey brown hair, and narrow eyes—and he was quite enjoying holding the buxom young woman next to him. The two also appeared to be several years older than Phobos and Eris. The woman—Dysnomia, Phobos supposed—wore the same uniform as Eris, though the latter had silver hair clips valiantly trying to hold back curly green bangs instead of Eris' silver bangles. Dysnomia also filled her uniform quite a bit more. She grinned at Eris, and settled into Deimos' arms. Eris' eyes narrowed and she pulled Phobos' arm around her waist. Phobos didn't mind, but he did wonder why._

" _I see you two are getting along," Persephone chuckled. Dysnomia smirked, which irritated Eris even more. Phobos paid no attention to this, instead staring at Deimos. For some reason, the young man felt very, very familiar—like they were good friends, but that made no sense, as they'd just met. He very much wanted to ask,_ Do I know you? _, but had a feeling that he shouldn't. Not in front of Persephone. Though why he felt_ that _way he didn't know. He rubbed his head, which had started to throb again. This was getting even more confusing…_

" _Dysnomia, Eris, I want you to take these boys to see Lord Sol," Persephone ordered. Dysnomia smiled—a real smile—and Eris released Phobos to clap her hands._

" _Of course! C'mon, Phobos!" She tugged at his arm, and they followed the other two into the hallway. They began to walk, but out of the corner of his eye Phobos saw Persephone dart into another room, leaving the door slightly ajar._

" _I'll—catch up," he said, and ran down the hallway to the open door. Eris' brow furrowed, and she followed, hooking her arm into the crook of his elbow._

" _We have to go, Phobos!" she snapped, clearly irritated. "You're going to meet Lord Sol! He's the most wonderful—"_

" _Shhhh!"_

 _Both looked inside to see Persephone sitting bedside to a young girl with long blue hair and bright blue eyes. It looked like she was wearing something similar to Eris' uniform, but Phobos couldn't be sure as she was covered with a white blanket. Her eyes widened as they darted back and forth, clearly unsure of where she was. Phobos frowned. She also felt familiar, like Deimos. Who was she?_

" _Hello, Luna," Persephone said—_

— — — — — —

 _So_ that's _Luna_ , Espy said. Celeste swatted at her.

"Shut up!" she whispered angrily. Espy pouted.

 _It sounds like you_ do _look like her, though—_

" _Shut up!"_

— — — — — —

— _not my name," Luna snapped._

" _Dear, of course your name is Luna,"_

 _Phobos saw Persephone's eyes glow brighter—but more importantly…_

" _I said that too," he whispered to Eris. "It's not just me!"_

 _Eris made a face. "That doesn't_ matter _—"_

" _No, it's not!" Luna cried, heedless of her audience. "Where's my Piplup?! Where are my_ friends?! _"_

" _You'll meet them soon. It seems your medicine didn't work. I'll fix that, don't worry. Right now, you need to sleep."_

" _No, I—" Persephone grabbed the girl's chin; she gasped, and tried to pull away. However, Persephone's grasp was too tight, and Luna couldn't squirm free._

"Go to sleep."

 _Phobos watched as the girl's eyes closed. Her body completely relaxed, and Persephone let her fall into the pillow._

" _We need to leave," Eris whispered urgently. Phobos bit his lip._

" _But I…I_ know _her…like Deimos…"_

" _No you don't! Come on!" Eris growled, dragging Phobos away—_

— — — — — —

 _Shhhhkt. Beep beep! CLICK._

Pheebee fell silent immediately as they both heard the noise of a door preparing to open. Celeste turned to hers, but the door didn't move. Celeste blinked. That meant someone was opening up Pheebee's room…

"I've brought dinner, Phobos!"

"Eris!" Pheebee said, a smile in his voice. "I wasn't expecting you. I haven't finished those books yet."

"Oh, well, I just wanted to check on you." Venus sounded a little nervous.

"Oh good, you brought another berry!" There was the faint sound of chewing while Venus' boots clanked against the floor. Celeste could only assume the girl had sat down.

"How's that recruit you were complaining about coming along?"

Venus sighed. "I _don't_ want to talk about it. She's just so—impossible! Nearly as bad as _you!"_

"Is that a compliment I hear?"

"Oh, stop it." She was silent for a moment. "Anyway, I just wanted to see you."

"It's nice to see you too." He paused. "Eris, why are you _really_ here?"

"W-what do you mean? I—"

"You're nervous. Don't think I can't see it."

Venus coughed. "W-well…it's…it's been a while since your last checkup, Phobos..."

"So?" there was an edge to Pheebee's voice that made Celeste uncomfortable. She'd never heard him sound like that…

"Lord Sol wants to see you again."

"What?! _No!_ "

There was a rustle of fabric, and a thud. The light from the vent blacked out, and Celeste realized that someonehad been shoved against it.

"Phobos, _please_ ," Venus pleaded, her voice muffled. "I—I can't—and I don't want to put this off—you _need_ a check-up!"

"I'm doing fine!" Pheebee growled.

"You are _not_ fine! Phobos, your _eye_ —"

"This just means it's a bad idea," Pheebee snapped. "Just like everything else!"

"Please, love, please, for me…I—I don't want to see you hurting…"

"Eris, I'm fine. _As long as I'm away from him!_ "

"Phobos…please…just come with me. If you don't, I'll have to…please, Phobos, I don't _want_ to—"

"Then keep that lunatic away from me!"

Venus gasped. Then, softly: "I'm so sorry…"

"Eris—" Pheebee started, but he didn't finish have a chance to finish.

 _BEEP._

The sound seemed to echo around the room. Then, a soft sigh, and a thump. The light returned to the vent, and there were the faint clopping sounds of someone wearing boots getting to their feet. It had to be Venus; if Phobos was dressed anything like Celeste, he would be barefoot.

"I really am sorry," Venus whispered. "But this is for the best…"

 _No it's not!_ Celeste wanted to scream. _If he hates it that much IT'S NOT!_ but she didn't dare make a noise. If she did, who knew what Venus would do to both of them…

 _Shhhhkt. Beep beep! CLICK._

"Get him on the gurney," Venus snapped. Celeste pulled her ear away from the vent; she couldn't bear to hear anymore. She waited until she heard the door beep twice, then slumped against the wall. Why _she_ felt exhausted she didn't know…but she did know her friend had been stolen—and she had no idea when, or _if_ , he would come back. She noticed something purple and green in the corner of her vision; Espy, sitting prim and proper, her tail curled around her body. The Espeon cocked her head.

 _Hey, maybe—_

" _Shut up, Espy."_

Silence reigned, and Celeste curled her arms around her knees. She then let her head drop into the gap between her arms. She stayed like that for a long time.

— — — — — —


	6. CHAPTER SIX

10

 _ **NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

CHAPTER SIX

— — — — — —

"Good morning!"

Celeste slowly rolled over onto her side with a groan. She looked up to see Venus standing before her, a tray of food in hand. The door was shut, but Venus was pressed against it. She watched Celeste warily—probably trying to guess if one of the girl's violent hallucinations would appear. However, Celeste merely pushed herself to an upright position and waited. After a moment, Venus smiled and sat down next to her, passing over the tray.

"How are you feeling, Persephone?"

 _Awful,_ Celeste thought. "Great," she said. Venus frowned. Apparently she had picked up on Celeste's mood.

"Honestly, Persephone. I'm starting to think you don't like me!"

 _I don't,_ Celeste thought angrily. However, she plastered a huge, fake grin across her face. "Of course I do, Venus. I…I like you a _lot_."

Venus smiled again. "I'm glad. How are you this morning?"

 _You took away Pheebee. I hate you._ "I'm great." She pulled the tray onto her lap, and, though she felt no hunger, she began to eat. She knew if Pheebee was here, he'd tell her that facing Venus was always easier on a full stomach. If he was here…

 _How are you holding up, Celeste?_

Celeste looked up and saw Espy sitting to attention behind Venus. Her ears were high and forward, and her eyes shined mischievously as her three-pronged tail twitched in thought. Celeste blinked. Why was Espy so excited?

"Persephone? Persephone?"

Celeste jumped, and turned her attention back to Venus. "I'm sorry, Venus," she said as Espy cozied up beside her. "I got a little distracted."

Venus looked uneasy, as she was now quite familiar with Celeste's 'distractions.' However, the girl wasn't screaming, so that meant it was probably still safe to talk to her. Venus cleared her throat, then smiled.

"Very good. But you _must_ pay attention. Lord Sol wants to meet you soon, so I really want you to—"

 _I've got an idea on how you can find Phobos,_ Espy interrupted. _Don't look at me, we need her to not know I'm here._ Celeste's eyes widened slightly, but she did as asked, instead focusing her gaze on Venus' nose. It was a trick Pheebee had taught her; it made her look to Venus that Celeste was giving her eye contact, even though she was actually avoiding that piercing gaze.

 _You should pretend that you love Lord Sol,_ the little Espeon said. _If you say you love him, Venus will take you out of this room. Then we can look for the hospital and find Phobos._

Celeste wanted to congratulate Espy on such a brilliant idea, but knew she couldn't—if Venus knew what they were doing, she would stop them. Instead she smiled widely, and grabbed Venus' hand. Venus paused her rambling, clearly shocked.

"I _do_ love Lord Sol," Celeste said, and tried to look like she believed it. "I realized what you've been trying to do all this time. You were trying to _help_ me!"

 _Good job,_ Espy said, a huge grin on her face. _Keep going!_

Celeste's smile widened. "I just _love_ him! I understand everything now, Venus!"

"You—you do?" Venus said, stunned. Then her eyes narrowed, and she stared directly into Celeste's eyes. "You _really_ love Lord Sol?"

 _Celeste, mother, sister, Pheebee_ , Celeste thought, and was reassured that she remembered the words. Espy jumped onto Venus' head and put her paws over the girl's eyes.

 _Go ahead, Celeste,_ she said, grinning. _Keep it up!_

Celeste stared at Espy's paws. "I love him with all my heart," she said firmly. "He's going to save the world!"

Venus stared at her for a while—or at least tried to—then leaned back.

"I…" She bit her lip; Celeste merely stared straight into the Espeon's paws. She started to get a headache, even with Espy's paws covering Venus' eyes, but took a deep breath and smiled.

 _Celeste, mother, sister, Pheebee,_ she repeated over and over. _Celeste, mother, sister, Pheebee_ …

Venus hesitated, then smiled and clapped her hands. "I am so happy, Persephone!" she cried, jumping up. Espy jumped off of her head and landed on Celeste's shoulder, smirking.

 _She bought it,_ the creature gloated. Celeste smiled a _real_ smile.

 _Don't worry, Pheebee,_ she thought as Venus happily unlocked the door. _We'll find you soon._

— — — — — —

"You ready?" Paul said as he hefted his backpack onto his shoulder, carefully adjusting the green bandana around his arm. He handed Pina its twin, and she tied it around her arm. She adjusted her new green sleeveless shirt, which went with her cargo pants surprisingly well. She checked to make sure she had Dashing's pokéball on her hip, and Chimera's pokéball clipped on its necklace. She nodded. Looker gave them one last pathetic look.

"Melisa will have the location pinpointed in a few days," he said. "Wandering won't help. If you stay—"

"You have my number," Pina interrupted, waving her cellphone. She stuck it in her pocket, and hefted her own backpack.

"Let's go, Paul."

Paul nodded. "Call us with any updates, Looker," he said. "But we can't waste any time. Not when we're so close…"

Looker opened his mouth, but Pina shook her head. "The longer Celeste's off her medicine, the worse her symptoms get. I have to find her before she hurts herself!"

Looker sighed. "All right. I'll call you with updates…and be _careful_."

"We will," Paul answered. Then he and Pina stepped into the elevator and pressed the up button. As it shot up, Pina felt her ears pop, as they had when she descended. She held her nose shut and blew to clear them out as Paul leaned against the wall.

"Where do you want to go to first?" he asked as they stepped off the elevator. Pina bit her lip.

"Melisa narrowed it down to Eterna City or Eterna Forest…"

"Yeah." He as they crossed the lobby and walked through the backyard. As they climbed through the hole in the fence, she said, "But we got attacked in Eterna Forest…"

"Yeah." They walked around the house and started down the sidewalk, heading towards the parking lot Looker stored his jeep in. Paul shook his head a little.

"I've always had a bad feeling about that forest. It's too big. If they're there….well, I've looked, but…"

"But we have an advantage this time." Pina smiled and touched the Friend Ball around her neck. "I have a good feeling Chimera can lead us to their base. We just need to get it there."

"Hey! Are you from _Oreburgh City?!_ " someone yelled behind them. Both whirled, but the yeller was not interested in them. Instead the boy, dressed in red shirt and red cap, was glaring at a young girl dressed in black. The girl glared and palmed a pokéball.

"I am! What's it to you?!" she snarled.

"Get out of _my_ city!" the boy snarled back, and unclipped a pokéball on his belt. "Go, Monferno!" The fiery chimp appeared in the middle of the street, and stomped the ground with his furry feet.

The girl snorted. "Go, Kadabra!" In a flash of red, the Pokémon materialized, floating, to face the Monferno.

" _Idiots!"_ Paul growled. "We have to stop them before they—"

" _Psychic!"_

Both the boy and the Monferno gasped as they were lifted off of the ground. The two hovered, their bodies surrounded by a cerulean glow. The girl watched with narrowed eyes as the boy's face began to turn blue.

"Dashing!" Pina called, and threw the unicorn's pokéball. As he appeared in a glow of red, he reared and galloped between the two trainers.

"The Kadabra! Stomp!" Pina yelled, pointing over at the girl's side of the street. Dashing raced to the creature's side and reared one more. His diamond hooves crashed down on the Kadabra's head, and it fell to the ground. So did the boy and Monferno, gasping.

"Torterra! Frenzy Plant!" Paul snapped, throwing the creature's pokéball. As it appeared roots grew from under it to crush both the Monferno and the Kadabra to the ground. Both battlers stared at Torterra, then at Paul and Pina. Their eyes were wide and terrified.

"Get out of here!" Paul snarled. It wasn't creative, but it did the job. Both trainers recalled their Pokémon and dashed away down the street.

Pina looked down at the pokéball in her hand. "Good job, Dashing," she said. "C'mon back."

"You did well," Paul said, and the Torterra preened. He recalled it and sighed. "I was hoping it wasn't this bad."

Pina automatically reached up to play with the Friend Ball. "Me too. Do you think…"

"I hope not. Look, the sooner we catch those crazies, the sooner this'll stop…hopefully."

Pina nodded, and the two headed over to the parking lot. They climbed into the car and Paul slipped the key in the ignition. Pina unclipped the Friend Ball and held it—the Friend Ball in her left, Dashing's in her right. They were all she had.

She smiled a little bit. She clipped the Friend Ball back on her necklace, and Dashing's pokéball on her belt. She had them and Paul, and that was more than enough. They'd find these Nebula freaks, and get her sister back—and all of the other kidnapped kids, too. She sighed. It wouldn't be easy, but…

She looked at Paul. He had a look on his face she rarely saw. Someone utterly serious, determined—perhaps even devoted—to rescuing a friend he knew well. It was the same expression Pina herself wore. She grinned, and faced forward as the jeep bounced over potholes in the street. They were on their way.

— — — — — —

" _Wait, are you serious?"_

" _Deadly," Looker said. Behind him was a giant map of Sinnoh, with variously colored pins on each city. Pina shook her head._

" _That's not possible. We went through all those cities without any problems!"_

" _Twinleaf is neutral, and Sandgem Town recently allied with Jubilife and Oreburgh," Looker replied._

" _How did you not notice?" Paul scoffed. "Didn't you see a lot of people in your town wearing green?"_

" _My mom's ranch isn't_ in _Twinleaf, it's_ nearby _it," Pina snapped. "We're self-sufficient. I didn't need to go into town until Mom and Dr. Hopkins okayed Celeste's Pokémon journey." Pina looked away. "I was supposed to look after her…"_

 _Looker sighed. "What kind of clothing were you wearing?"_

" _Um…same thing I'm wearing now. Black shirt, camo pants."_

" _And Celeste?"_

 _Pina rolled her eyes. "She had to pack_ all _of her favorite dresses. She was wearing her yellow one when we went through Sandgem. I remember because she kept getting compliments and she was bragging about it. And when that one got too dirty she switched to a black one. Then the purple one…then the_ frilly _black one…then the violet one…" She sighed. "My sister has a lot of dresses."_

 _Paul whistled. "Wow. You guys have amazing luck."_

" _Luck?"_

" _Purple is Sandgem's color. Yellow is Jubilife. Black is Oreburgh. Since the three are allied, they thought you were from Oreburgh—and they probably thought your sister was from whatever city's color she was wearing."_

" _So if she had worn her red one before we entered the Forest…"_

" _That's Hearthome. They hate the Sand-Jubi-Ore Alliance. If she'd worn the red one, you two would've had a hell of a fight on your hands."_

 _Pina's face paled. "But—'alliance'? What do you mean?"_

 _Looker looked grave. "You understand how each city is independent, right? They're all city-states, not simple cities?"_

 _Pina rolled her eyes. "Of course. Everyone knows that."_

" _Well, something is making them want to…" He sighed. "Honestly, we think something—or someone—is trying to drive us all to war."_

"War?! _That hasn't happened since—"_

" _I know," Looker said. "But the cities are allying with each other. Eterna and Floraroma. Solaceon and Hearthome. The Sand-Jubi-Ore Alliance. Some of them are obvious, and some are happening behind the curtains. And we think Nebula is behind it somehow. This…anger…didn't start until four years ago. When the trainers started disappearing."_

" _What could they get out of it?" Pina asked, baffled. Looker shook his head._

" _We haven't figured that part out yet," he said. "Or even how they're doing it. Though Melisa has a theory…"_

" _Which is why you have to change your clothes," Paul said. "It's a lot easier to be from Twinleaf or Celestic City than it is to be from Oreburgh. If you walked around in that here, you'd get jumped. Hearthome trainers really hate Oreburgh trainers."_

 _Pina fell quiet, thinking. People were fighting over something as stupid as where they were born? That made no sense! When she had started her first Pokémon journey, she crossed regions, and no one made a fuss that a Sinnoh girl was competing in a Johto tournament. They only asked what it was like to live in Sinnoh, and she had asked what it was like in Johto. And when she had visited Kanto and Hoenn…no, no one there gave her problems. But had she missed something that was right under her nose? She_ had _noticed a lot of trainers dressed in green when they hit that first Pokémon Center. And maybe Celeste's dresses got those compliments because they thought she was from their city, not because Celeste had good fashion sense…_

" _All right," Pina said softly. "So what are we doing about it?"_

" _Come on and meet the others," Looker said. "They'll tell you."_

— — — — — —

"And this is the cafeteria! If you don't like what Nyx is serving, just ask her and she'll whip something up for you!"

Celeste suppressed a sigh. It was just another doorway in a long, long series of doors. She looked down the curving hallway. It was a little odd, as all of the doorways were on the left side of the hallway and nothing but childish drawings in frames hung on the right, but…wasn't there ever an ending to it? This place was a labyrinth! She looked down and saw Espy bouncing beside her. Comforted, she looked into the room, since Venus seemed so proud of it. Her eyes widened. The room was _very_ large, and had a long buffet line towards the back. The rest of the room was filled with tables, where people of various ages sat eating and chatting. She looked more carefully; the majority of the people were children, somewhere around her age, though there were several teenagers mixed between the preteens. Venus waved to them happily. There were no adults.

But this was just nonsense to fill her mind while she tried to take the rest of it in.

Their _bodies_ …

Tails swished over benches. Some people only had one human limb, with the other replaced by longer or shorter one in various colors—Celeste blanched when she saw a boy turn and in place of his left arm was a blue fin. Some others only had nubs where arms and legs once reigned, though they didn't look like they minded the loss at all. Several people had scars all over their faces, with circles drawn on in the middle. Celeste shuddered. She _hoped_ they were drawings. There were even a few people with wings…and behind the buffet line was a monstrous centaur, with a teenager's upper body and a Rapidash's lower. She smiled at Celeste, and Celeste stepped back, eyes wide.

"What is this?" she whispered. Venus cocked her head.

"I've told you, haven't I, Persephone?"

"You…" Celeste wracked her mind, trying to remember words that previously she had tried very hard to forget. "You said…"

 _Improvement,_ Espy said, licking a paw.

"Oh yes. You said he _improved_ us! But this…"

Venus smiled. "But they are," she said happily. "And they can all do things those weak "normal" humans can't do. I haven't even shown you what we can do…look!"

She looked at an empty table, her eyes and Espeon gem embedded in her forehead both glowing. The table began to float, and fuzzed out of existence, to appear on the other side of the room, hovering above the ground. It gently settled onto the floor. Celeste gaped. No one else in the room looked up.

"And this is the least of what I can do. I'd call that an improvement, wouldn't you?" Venus preened.

 _Close your mouth and say yes,_ Espy snapped. Celeste gulped and nodded.

"Y-yes. It is. It definitely…is."

 _We have to get out of here,_ Celeste thought desperately. _I don't_ want _to be improved! But…_ Celeste squared her shoulders. _Not without Pheebee!_

"What do you think, Persephone?" Venus asked, smiling.

Celeste tried to return the smile. "I'm just…amazed about all this. How did this happen?"

"Lord Sol. Everyone serves him here. And when it's time…" Her eyes and the gem in her forehead gleamed. "When it's time, we're going to help him save the whole world! _Everyone_ will be improved! And that time is _soon_ , Persephone! You're so lucky you came here now! You can help us!"

"But—what are we going to do?"

Venus' smile somehow widened. "We have agents helping us already. All those _regular_ humans, they're being led by idiots with no vision! So we're helping them realize that. Soon all we'll have to do is step in and help the Chosen save the world with everyone here!" She paused, a little sadly. "I'm afraid the _unchosen_ will have to go. But sometimes there has to be losses to achieve perfection."

"Losses…"

 _That Sol guy's going to kill off everybody he doesn't like._ For once, even Espy looked taken aback. _These kids want to take over Sinnoh. And have their crazy boss rule it!_

Celeste gulped. Had Pheebee known this? Wouldn't he have told her? But…no. He always tried to protect her. He had to have known, he just didn't want to frighten her…

This _is why he's down there,_ Celeste realized. _He knows. And they don't want him to do anything about it. So why release him to the hospital?_

There was only one way to find out. Venus had said she was taking Pheebee to see Lord Sol…in the hospital. Celeste balled her fists. _That_ was where she wanted to go, not this cafeteria! But how to do it?

"Venus, where do you go to have this done?" she asked, waving her hand at the kids in the room. Venus looked surprised.

"Are you already interested in an improvement, Persephone?"

"I'd…like to talk to the guy who does it."

"That's Lord Sol, silly. But yes, you _should_ meet him." She smiled. "I was going to wait for a couple of days, but you're so enthusiastic...I just can't say no to that!" She frowned. "He's busy right now, though. We should wait until he's ready."

"Where?" Celeste asked. She tried not to sound desperate.

Venus sighed. "Well…in the hospital. But we can't—"

"Show me where!" Celeste cried, nearly hopping with excitement. Finally! "I want to meet him!"

Venus smiled slightly. She interpreted Celeste's excitement as enthusiasm to meet Lord Sol. In reality, Celeste just couldn't hold back her enthusiasm to finally meet Pheebee face-to-face. "We could go over there and wait for him. I thought you'd like a snack first…"

Snack? Celeste tried to look interested in such a thing, though she'd lost any and all sense of hunger when she saw the centaur…thing. Celeste didn't want to be _near_ her, much less accept _food_ from her. Celeste shook her head.

"I'm fine. I'd like to go now please."

Venus smiled. Such a change in just a few hours! It almost made up for the things Phobos said to her last night. But she knew if she worked with Persephone enough, eventually the girl would break. They always did. And now Persephone was in a _hurry_ to meet Lord Sol, right when everyone was preparing for the big push! Today was _definitely_ a good day.

"Come along then, Persephone," she said. Celeste fell in line behind her obediently. "It's time to meet your father!"

 _And Pheebee,_ Celeste thought, somehow happy instead of nervous. What she would do after she found him she wasn't sure, but she had a feeling _he_ would have a few ideas. Probably something that would upset Venus and Lord Sol very much.

She smiled. She didn't mind that idea at all.


	7. CHAPTER SEVEN

_**NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

 _Author's note: So sorry this is late! Work held me up again...sigh._

— — — — — —

CHAPTER SEVEN

— — — — — —

Celeste followed Venus down the endless curving hallway. She wished she could prod the young woman into going faster, but that would probably be a bad idea. She still wasn't sure about what she was going to do when she found Pheebee. The idea of meeting face-to-face was enticing, but—how would they go about it? If anybody else was in the room, they would have to ignore each other. But what if he was hurt? She couldn't ignore that! She sighed. This had seemed a _lot_ simpler in the cell…

She shook her head slightly. No. Pheebee was smart, and he knew this place. If she found him, he would surely know what to do next. Because…then…

"What's that?" Celeste asked, momentarily distracted. Venus paused, then followed Celeste's pointed finger to the door in question. It was larger than the other doors, much larger, and written in the middle in huge block letters was the word 'POKÉMON'.

"Oh." Venus smiled and gave a half shrug. "That's where we store our Pokémon. Can't carry them around all the time, you know!"

Celeste blinked, and realized this was true. While there were lots of humans with Pokémon bits attached, there were no actual Pokémon in the facility other than her own. Curious, she approached the door. Venus clucked her tongue, and shook her finger.

"Now now, Persephone," she scolded. "We're going to go see Lord Sol, remember? There's no need to worry about anything else."

"I'm not worried," Celeste answered. The door had no knob. It could simply be pushed open. She edged a little closer. "I'm curious."

"Don't be. No one pays attention to them. Lord Sol is far more important."

 _But Pheebee's Raichu is probably in there,_ Celeste thought. She liked the Raichu, though she had never met it in person. Pheebee's best stories were always about his beloved Pokémon. She wanted to meet the creature that could warrant such love…

Celeste pushed the door open and ran inside.

" _Persephone!"_

The room was _huge_ , even larger than its doorway had implied. On both the left and right walls were rows and rows of pokéballs in various colors—some with designs Celeste didn't even know existed. Both walls also had large signs hanging on them; on the left was 'USED', and the right 'UNUSED'. And in the back of the room were stacked piles of cages, of all different sizes.

 _Wow,_ Espy said. Celeste jumped.

"How did you get in here?!"

 _I've_ told _you, I can walk through walls. What's all that stuff?_

"I…don't know…"

 _Let's go look!_

Celeste nodded, and walked to the back of the room. The door slammed open behind her, but she ignored it. She was too curious to see what was in those cages. Why would they even need them, if they had so many shelves of pokéballs? There wasn't any reason—

"Oh," Celeste said softly. As she got closer to the cages she could see each one was inhabited—but the inhabitants were unlike any Pokémon Celeste had seen before. There was an Arcanine with two extra heads—one a Mightyena, the other a Houndoom. There was a Seviper's body, but with a multiple heads…Dragonair, Milotic—and a strange snake Pokémon Celeste had never seen before, with a green and white face and long, spikey golden ears. However, complete creations were a rarity; the majority of them were simply damaged. Most of the Pokémon in the room were missing arms, legs, hands, tails—and their blank eyes showed they had stopped caring a long time ago.

She took a step back, her face white. She had to compose herself. She wasn't here to see these…things, she was here to see—

—a hand clamped on her shoulder. She jumped and let out a yelp.

"That's enough out of you," Venus said crossly. Celeste looked down, trying to think of the right response. Ah!

"I just wanted to see Lord Sol's work. It's so…impressive."

Venus calmed down a little bit. "Yes, it is. He is a master at his work."

 _I found the Raichu!_ Espy called. _Wow, it's got a real number done on it…_

Celeste looked around and saw Epsy sitting next to a small cage, with strong, stout bars and a complicated lock on the door. She bit her lip. She wanted to see it, but how could she do it without Venus noticing?

"Venus, can't you show me all of them?" she asked sweetly. "I want to see his work _up close_."

Venus shook her head, and tugged at Celeste's shoulder. "Recruits like you aren't even allowed in here. We need to leave."

"But I'm already here. Can't you show me around?"

Venus sighed. She knew if she wanted she could make the girl completely forget about the room—but considering how much effort and time it had taken to make Persephone realize the truth about Lord Sol, removing her memories would be a waste of effort. Venus had to recognize that this girl was simply difficult to work with. And, well, it _was_ Lord Sol's work. He probably wouldn't mind if she showed the recruit his best creations.

Venus sighed again. "All right. Follow me." She paused in front of a smallish cage; it contained an Espeon with a Glaceon's tail. The gem that should have been on its forehead was missing, and it was curled into a ball. The creature looked up at her, then rested its head back on the cage floor. It didn't appear to be particularly happy or unhappy Venus was there.

"This is 237, one of the oldest—"

"What's that over there?" Celeste asked as Espy waved her paw. "I want to see!"

"What? No, that's not—"

But Celeste had already darted forward and knelt in front of the cage next to Espy. _Finally,_ she could meet the mysterious Raichu! However, when she looked inside, she felt a thrill of shock—no, not shock. Fear. Raichu was an absolute _mess_. Both electric sacs were missing from his cheeks, with only crisscrossing scars for replacements. His body was covered with more scars, between which orange fur tried to grow valiantly. His spikey lightning-bolt shaped tail had been removed, and his right ear was missing. He was thin, and his eyes were closed.

 _Your Raichu is doing well_ …

Celeste bit her lip. This was _doing well_?

She looked in the cage next to him, where a monster with three tails and two heads lay. Its chest was not going up and down.

 _That must be_ not _doing well,_ Espy said, jerking her head towards the unmoving creature. Celeste bit her lip.

"Yeah…but…"

"Persephone!"

Celeste jumped and turned around. She had forgotten Venus was also in the room.

"Oh, sorry—"

"Raaaai…"

Celeste's eyes widened and she immediately turned back to the Raichu. He yawned and sat up, blinking owlishly.

"He was sleeping!" she cried, smiling. The Raichu turned and stared at her, clearly shocked.

" _Chuchu?"_ he asked disbelievingly. Celeste blinked, then remembered. _Luna_.

"No," she said very softly. "Just a friend." She looked up at Venus and smiled. "We're all friends here, aren't we?"

"Yes, we are," Venus said slowly, eyes narrowed. The Raichu looked at her and glowered.

" _Raichu!_ Raichu raichu rai _rairai!"_

 _Wow,_ Espy said. _He sounds really_ _mad_. Celeste nodded slightly. Venus glared at the Raichu and pulled Celeste up by her arm, squeezing tightly.

"You're hurting!" Celeste cried. Raichu, seeing the pain on Celeste's face, glowered at Venus.

"Raichu!" he snarled. Venus snorted and pulled Celeste out of the room. Celeste stared at her, amazed.

"Wow! He _really_ doesn't like you, does he?" she said. Venus actually growled.

"That _rat_ is _worthless_ ," she snapped. Celeste's eyes widened. That wasn't what Venus told Pheebee…which meant she _lied_ to him. She looked down at the floor to avoid the girl's gaze. Every time she interacted with Venus Celeste found yet another reason to dislike her. She honestly wondered how she had felt _any_ affection for Venus—the girl was a poisonous mess.

"Enough dancing around, Persephone," she said, dragging Celeste down the hall. "Do you want to meet Lord Sol or not?!"

"I—of course I—"

 _Who is worse, Celeste?_

Celeste froze. It was the spikey metal voice, the one that was always hiding.

 _Yes, Celeste, who is worse?_

" _No,"_ Celeste whispered. She couldn't see the speaker, but she didn't want to. She stood as still as a statue. Perhaps the voice wouldn't notice her…

 _Good luck,_ whispered Zammy in her ear. She screamed and raced down the hall. No. Not again! She would _not_ let them touch her, she wouldn't!

"Persephone!" Venus cried, and started to chase after her. But Venus was the least of Celeste's worries. What was _much_ scarier was the fact that Celeste could hear the clanking steps of the metal voice and heavy thumps of Zammy's feet. No, she didn't care about anything now. She merely had to _run_.

Venus groaned. How could such a little thing run so fast? She couldn't even keep up. Then she remembered she wasn't the _only_ officer in the compound.

" _Mercury! Neptune! Get over here!"_ she screamed, though the verbal aspect was unnecessary—the very loud thought would do. Of course, everyone else in the compound had heard it too, but it was more important to catch this crazy recruit than to worry who heard her or not. If she had the breath for it, she would have sighed. What on earth were they going to do with this lunatic?

— — — — — —

 _He watched the new recruits as they were carried into the large, dark gray van. All four were unconscious, and all of them were under thirteen. He looked away. He hated this part. He knew it was better for them now, since serving Lord Sol was the most important thing in the universe. But, despite the two years of service in his lord's employ, he felt a twinge of—what? Remorse? Anger? Unhappiness? Guilt? He was never able to nail the feeling down, and because of that he could never quite tell the others about it—not even Eris. He saw Luna across the clearing, helping Dysnomia and Deimos carefully position the—well, children, he had to admit it—in the back of the van so they lay in straight lines. Then, when finished, the couple jumped out, leaving Luna behind. The blue-haired girl beckoned at him, and he pulled himself up inside the truck, wincing._

" _It still hurts?" Luna asked. He nodded, rubbing at the scars on his right elbow. Deimos stood, shifting weight from foot to foot impatiently, next to Dysnomia. Instinctively the two's hands twined, and for a moment Phobos wished Eris was here instead of Luna. That would never happen, of course; Eris couldn't bear to leave the complex. He sighed, and rubbed at the scars again._

" _Don't worry," Dysnomia said. "It'll go away. It always does."_

" _I know." He looked down at the kids. "I just…" he bit his lip. "Why do we always have to knock them out to take them to Lord Sol? Shouldn't they—I mean, he's perfect. Shouldn't they…_ want _to see him?"_

" _Don't start this again," Deimos sighed. "They'll be very happy to see him when we get home."_

" _They'll be happy after Eris talks to them, you mean."_

" _Drop it, Phobos!" Deimos snapped. Phobos stared at his furry feet._

" _Sorry, Deimos."_

 _What he didn't say, what he_ never _said, was how much the whole thing bothered him. And what Lord Sol had done to Eris…Phobos knew it was in her best interest, but she'd barely survived it…and now Phobos was taking these kids to the same fate. He clenched his fist, though it stung to do so. It—it_ had _to be right, what Lord Sol was doing. But…_

 _He looked up and caught Luna's eye—and, for just one moment saw the same unease in her gaze. His eyes widened. Could he—could he_ not _be the only person who felt this way?_

 _Deimos and Dysnomia slammed the doors shut, and climbed into the cab of the van. As its ignition started Phobos quietly sidled over to Luna's side. As the van began to move he sat beside her._

" _Hey," he said quietly. He knew no one was in the back with them but each other and the unconscious children, but he was entering dangerous territory. He took in a deep breath, then let it out. No, he had to say it, even if it was wrong. He_ had _to know._

" _Do you…"_

 _Luna wouldn't meet his eyes. Then, equally softly: "Yeah."_

 _Phobos' heart began to pound. He wasn't the only one! "You—you feel it too?" he whispered._

 _Luna nodded slightly, then took a deep breath. "I thought it was just me…"_

" _Me, too." There was a long pause. Finally, Phobos broke the silence. "But that…that means…"_

 _Luna nodded again, once. Silence reigned again as the two stewed in their own thoughts, slowly coming to a terrifying realization that was against everything they knew._

" _Lord Sol's…n-not…not_ right _," Phobos whispered, so softly even he could barely hear it. Luna gulped and clutched at his hand, squeezing tightly. Phobos winced, but she didn't let go._

" _Y-yes…"_

 _Phobos bit his lower lip. What he was saying…what_ she _was saying…though he'd never heard of anyone disagreeing with Lord Sol, he had a feeling there would be consequences. Terrible consequences._

 _He stared at the unconscious children. There were consequences if Phobos and Luna continued to follow him, too. And Phobos had a feeling he—_ they _—knew which was worse._

 _Up in the cab, Dysnomia laughed loudly, startling both Luna and Phobos. However, Luna did not release his hand—and he didn't ask her to let go. For the rest of the ride back to the complex, there were no sounds. Only the soft, regular breaths of four sleeping children, and the panicked breathing of two people who had realized everything that they stood on and believed in was…_

 _Wrong._

 _What made it worse was that they both knew they had to do something about it._

— — — — — —

Phobos woke very, very slowly. He was coherent enough to know he wasn't in his cell, but not enough to care. He tried to force himself awake, the world a fog around him. He thought he heard words—something like finish an examination?—but the concoction of drugs injected into him via his collar were too strong for him to think. It would be much easier to sleep. He sighed, and relaxed. Yes, sleep…

Then someone stuck a finger into his bad eye, pushing the eyelid up, and his brain burned itself awake. He bit back a scream, and tasted blood in his mouth. He tried to roll off the table, but was forced to remain in place by the restraints on his wrists, ankles, and neck.

"Ah, so you can feel something," a calm, almost monotone voice said. It was deep, and horribly familiar.

Sol.

Phobos' face turned into a snarl, and instinctively snapped his fingers; however, instead of fireballs forming on his fingertips, his hands went numb. He tried to hide the fear in his voice as he squinted into the light. "Get…g-get away _aaaaAAAAAAAH!"_

"So you felt that too. Interesting. Yet your eye doesn't respond to light. Can you see anything through it?"

Phobos vaguely saw the silhouette of a man hovering above him. His glasses reflected the lights above the surgery table, making it impossible to see his eyes; however, his cropped blonde hair hovered around his head like a halo. A halo the man did not deserve, as the lunatic was as far as heaven as humanly possible. Phobos wreathed in his restraints, praying they had forgotten to tie one down. He couldn't do this again. He _couldn't._ This time they'd kill him. Once he wouldn't have cared, but not now. He couldn't abandon Celeste. Not like…

"Stop it," Deimos snapped from behind him. "You're not getting loose."

Phobos stopped and tried to collect himself. "Still following this lunatic around like a dog? I should've hit you harder last time. Can you walk yet?"

Deimos growled, and slammed a fist into Phobos' solar plexus. Phobos tried not to cry out, but a whimper escaped as the pain smashed into his body, allowing no nerve untouched. Deimos raised his hand for another punch, but Sol put a restraining hand on his wrist. The young man dropped it with a sigh. Sol smiled.

"Mercury, do not get upset. We have to continue his examination, after all." Light glinted off of Sol's glasses as he cocked his head. "Now, where were we? Ah, yes…it appears your eye is swollen. Did you scratch at these stitches? It looks infected. I'll have to take a sample…"

" _Stop it! Leave me alone! S-stop!"_

"Now now, I want to see if that eye is working. Venus would never forgive me if I didn't check on _you_. Mercury, get me a scalpel."

" _No! Le—leave me a-alone! I'm f-fine!"_

 _Mercury! Neptune! GET OUT HERE!_

While all three heard the words, they hit Mercury the hardest, as he had been named—and it hit him over the brain like a sledgehammer. He clutched his head and glared at the door. He _really_ hated it when Venus got upset; the entire compound ended up knowing it. Lord Sol rubbed at his forehead, then sighed.

"Go help her," he said simply. "Come back when you're finished."

Mercury sighed and left, irritated. He _liked_ helping the doctor work on Phobos.

 _This had better be important!_ he thought. Then he pushed the door open and jumped back as a flash of long blue hair raced past him.

" _Mercury! Catch her!"_ Venus screamed, both verbally and mentally. Mercury glared at the retreating form, rubbing his forehead. This little girl was worth _two_ psychic shouts? He'd give Venus an earful later, but for now decided to do as she asked. He shook his head. He had never been the fastest runner, though. He had to concede that one to Phobos. Though the teenager certainly couldn't run anymore…

He narrowed his eyes. He didn't _have_ to run as long as Venus didn't mind a little collateral damage. He slammed his right foot on the ground. The entire hallway started shaking, and the girl shook with it. She yelped, tripped, and fell, clutching to the ground. Mercury let the Earthquake fade away and ran to the girl, pulling one of her arms behind her before she could stand up.

"No! No! Get them away from me!" she screamed, struggling desperately in his grip. He frowned and wrapped his other arm around her neck, trying to hold her down. Even then she fought like a demon until Venus managed to catch them up.

" _Go to sleep,"_ she hissed, glaring into the girl's eyes. The girl somehow fought the command, still struggling in Mercury's grip, her eyes wide as she stared at something beyond Venus' shoulder. She kicked once more, nearly catching Venus in the stomach. Venus groaned, and rubbed at her head. Usually she _gave_ headaches. Instead she was _getting_ one.

"You called, Venus?" Neptune asked sardonically behind him. Venus ignored the tone and pointed at the girl.

"Knock her out."

" _No! No! Keep away from me! No!"_

Neptune cocked her head, but walked up to the girl. A pile of powder materialized in her clawed right paw.

"Sleep well, my love," she said, and blew it into the girl's face. For a moment she _still_ resisted—then passed out. Neptune smiled. _No one_ resisted her Sleep Powder. She looked up at Venus.

"She doesn't seem to like you," Neptune grinned. Venus shook her head.

"She wasn't talking to _me_. Mercury, could you take her back to her cell? ISO-02?" She sighed. "I thought she was ready to meet Lord Sol. I was wrong."

Mercury rolled his eyes. What he _wanted_ to do was go back in and help Lord Sol dissect Phobos. However, he knew the girls weren't strong enough to carry the kid, so he nodded. He would just have to do it quickly. He threw the girl over his shoulder and started walking down the hall. Neptune joined him, wrapping her arm around his waist. Neptune caught Venus' eye, and smirked. Venus quietly fumed, but turned back. She needed to check on everyone else in the compound. She knew a psychic shout hurt everyone's heads, and two would leave them reeling. There'd probably be many questions waiting for her, too. She shook her head, and picked up her pace. This was important. She had to attend to it. She was an officer, after all. The new kids especially would need help. Not like Phobos. Not…

She walked past the hospital door, and headed down. The hospital was on the first floor, along with the storage rooms and the cafeteria….she would have to comfort everyone in the cafeteria first, then find anyone in the dormitories or rec room and calm them down. The pain could be quite intense, depending on how sensitive the receiver's brain was. The entire Psychic squad would be needing help now…

Her feet stopped moving.

No. She couldn't. She had a job to do. A very specialized job. And she loved her job. A job she needed to do right now. The other members would be very upset; they would want their sister's help. They always wanted her help, and she was happy to give it.

She had do this. She would do this. He would be fine. He had always survived his checkups before. It would be no different now. It would be fine.

She walked down the hallway, and entered the cafeteria. Everyone seemed to be at least a little in pain, and Venus tried to think of what to do. She had never been a healer, but neither was anyone else here. It had always been a puzzle that _no members_ could heal…the ability was rare, but not unheard of. Still, even if she couldn't heal, she could at least comfort.

Her feet wouldn't move.

"V-Venus?" a boy asked. Venus jumped.

"Oh…Ganymede."

"My head hurts, Venus…why did you yell so hard?"

Venus sighed. "I'm sorry, Ganymede. I needed help."

"You could call us! We'll always help _you_ , Venus!" Ganymede smiled brightly, though he still rubbed his head. His companions at the table nodded earnestly.

"I will, next time!" Venus laughed. But she stared at the closed door. Lord Sol was just making sure Phobos' body wasn't rejecting the new eye. It was a simple, quick procedure. He would be fine. He would be fine. He'd already survived eight improvements, this was just one more. _He would be fine._

"Venus?"

She looked at the door, then at Ganymede, who cocked his head.

"Venus? Are you okay?"

She loved her job. She truly did.

But she loved him more.

"I'll come back in a little bit, okay?" she said brightly. "I have to take care of something." She then turned for the door. She reminded herself it was undignified for an officer to run, though she truly wanted to. If she was lucky, Lord Sol had finished with Phobos' checkup. If she was _very_ lucky, Mercury hadn't helped.

And, if _he_ was lucky, Phobos had survived it.

— — — — — —


	8. CHAPTER EIGHT

_**NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

 _Author's note: ugh I have the worst luck with this story. Sorry about the lack of updates! My computer died. I still don't have a new one (lol public libraries amirite) buuuut I uploaded some of the chapters into the doc manager thing, so this won't happen again. Hopefully._

— — — — — —

CHAPTER EIGHT

— — — — — —

 _As Phobos walked to the Pokémon room, Eris pouted beside him._

" _Honestly! I think you like that stupid Pikachu more than you like me!" she whined. Phobos laughed, and pulled her to him. She leaned forward, and so did he; the two kissed._

" _Of course not," he grinned after they broke apart. Then, in a teasing tone, "I like him_ just as much _as you."_

" _Don't make me jealous of a rodent!" She turned away, clearly upset._

" _You don't need to be jealous." He smiled and pulled her close for another kiss. "I'll always love you."_

 _Eris glowed, both with joy and actual light. The Espeon gem embedded into her forehead shined brightly alongside her brilliant eyes. Phobos expected it, and grinned when she snuggled herself into his arms. When Eris was happy, she tended to lose control of her psychic abilities. Fortunately Phobos no longer got headaches around her. He smiled again. He didn't mind. It was what made her_ her.

" _But I haven't checked up on him for a couple days," he said seriously. She groaned and shook her head._

" _You know it throws him off if I don't visit every day," he continued._ Throws me off, too, _he didn't add. For some reason he_ always _felt better around Pikachu, regardless of what insanity was happening in his life—and sometimes it got quite insane._

 _Eris sighed, defeated. "All right. I guess."_

" _Don't you want to come with? 237 misses you."_

 _Eris shook her head. "I have…other things to do. I'll see you when you get back."_

 _He sighed, and waved as she left. He knew she didn't like Pikachu, though he could never figure out why. It wasn't like he loved her any less just because he had a favorite Pokémon to play with. She liked playing with 237, didn't she? It was practically the same thing._

 _He pushed the door open, and to his mild surprise saw Luna with a Piplup. She carefully brushed his quills until they lay flat and perfect; Piplup kept still, cooing happily. Phobos grinned._

" _With Piplup again?"_

" _With Pikachu again?" she teased back. He smiled, nodded, and walked over to Pikachu's cage. He had made it as comfortable as possible—the largest size they had, with plenty of toys, snacks, and a fluffy pillow for a bed—but he knew the little Pokémon didn't like it. Honestly,_ Phobos _didn't want him in there anymore than_ Pikachu _wanted to be there, but it was Lord Sol's orders. And no one questioned Lord Sol._

 _He looked around, and realized he and Luna were alone, with only the Pokémon around them for company. He grabbed a brush and sat down, Pikachu on his lap. He began to brush Pikachu's tail, and the little rodent released a happy "Chaaaa!" in contentment. There was quiet for a while. Then…_

" _Do you…remember…a week ago?" Luna asked hesitantly._

" _In the…the van?" He moved the brush to comb Pikachu's back; she began to smooth the quills on Piplup's head._

" _Y-yes."_

" _I…yes, I do." He looked up and glanced at the cages. Piplup's cage was filled with toys and treats, like Pikachu's…and while the other experiments also had beds and toys, the only playthings in the cages had been given to them by Phobos or Luna. Dysnomia and Deimos never even set foot in the room, and Eris had 237 taken out if she wanted to play with the little creature. Even Lord Sol ignored the experiments unless he needed them. Phobos looked away. He didn't like thinking about this, even though he saw them almost every day._

" _I've been thinking about a plan," he said, facing Luna. "But you may not like it."_

" _You may not like mine either," Luna said with a shaky laugh. Both of the Pokémon on their laps looked up, suddenly serious. Pikachu didn't even notice when Phobos started brushing his tail again._

" _I think…" Phobos started._

"… _We need to leave," Luna finished. Phobos looked at her, eyes wide._

" _I didn't think you'd think the same thing," he said, honestly surprised. Luna shook her head._

" _It—it's the only solution, isn't it?" she answered with an only slightly hysterical giggle. He nodded, biting his lip._

" _Pikachu!" Pikachu said firmly, and climbed up onto Phobos' shoulder. "Pika pika!"_

" _Piplup!" Piplup added, and pulled at Luna's shirt with its green Treecko hand. "Piplup_ lup _!"_

" _Right," Luna said, now determined. She stroked Piplup's back. "We have to do it. But we can't leave them behind."_

" _No, we can't," Phobos said in a faraway voice. Then he waved at the cages behind them. "We can't leave_ them _here…look at them all. They're…" He shook his head. "It's just wrong to leave them trapped here. If we're not here to protect them…"_

 _Luna sighed. "_ All _of them? Can't we—come back for them?"_

" _I don't think so." He stood up, and walked over to 406's cage. She was still recovering from the tail transplant, but doing well. Her Luxray head lifted itself off of her pillow slowly, and the Ampharos head mewled weakly. Phobos stuck his hand between the bars and began to stroke the Luxray's nose. 406 purred in enjoyment, and rubbed her heads against the cage. Phobos smiled and turned to Luna. 406 huffed and tried to reach her paw through the bars to regain Phobos' attention. He grinned and reached in to scratch her again. Her Luxray head sighed contentedly and continued to purr, though it was occasionally shoved away by the Ampharos, which demanded petting as well. One head or two, 406 dearly loved being touched. He sighed. There was no question of Pikachu tagging along in this escape attempt; he was coming. But the idea of leaving 406 and her companions alone? With no one to protect them, or play with them, or even give them a scratch on the head? No._

" _If…" he shook his head, and took a deep breath. "_ When _we leave, we may not be able to come back. And we'd leave them all here, trapped. I can't do that to them. Especially…especially Pikachu."_

 _Luna looked skeptical. "Piplup and Pikachu are small. We can carry them. How do you expect to get 388 out? Or 406? They're too big!"_

" _Pipi!" Pikachu snapped. He jumped down and ran to 406's cage. 406 sniffed it curiously. He pointed at 406 firmly. "Pika pika pikachu!"_

" _Piplup!" Piplup added. Phobos smiled. Luna sighed, defeated._

" _Fine._ Somehow _we'll sneak all of the experiments out. But what about the others?" she asked. Phobos bit his lip._

" _I don't know…I love her, but Eris can't keep a secret to save her life." His eyes narrowed. "And I certainly don't trust Dysnomia. I've never liked her."_

" _But…Deimos?"_

 _Phobos brightened. "That's it! We'll escape with Deimos! If we pretend it's just us visiting the experiments like usual, no one will expect it if we release them all at once. We'll just run until we get out, and Deimos would knock down the entryway after us with his Rock Slide. It would definitely slow the others down, and give us enough of a lead to get out of the forest!"_

 _Luna frowned. "But you know how he is with Dysnomia. What if…"_

" _He's our_ _best friend. He won't betray us," Phobos said firmly. "Trust me, this will work!"_

— — — — — —

"Phobos? Phobos, can you answer me?" Venus called as she crashed the hospital doors open. There was no response, but that wasn't unusual. He could just be unconscious. Lord Sol sometimes did that to keep him under control. She ran inside and saw, in the very back of the room, a bed with a form on it. It wasn't moving. She whimpered and ran to its side.

"Phobos?" she said again. "Are you awake? Can you hear me?" She pressed her head against his chest, but—no. His heartbeat thumped beneath her ear. He was definitely alive. She sighed in relief. She knew it. He was too _stubborn_ to die…but he was mess. A huge gash tore through his right eye from forehead to chin, and while it had been stitched up neatly, other, smaller wounds had been left unattended. Venus growled, and snatched a bottle of iodine, a soft cloth, and a small bowl. She knew Lord Sol, and he would never leave Phobos like this. _Mercury,_ on the other hand…

Venus sighed and poured the iodine into the bowl, following with water. After it was mixed, she took up the soft cloth and began to clean Phobos' face. He didn't react. She finished cleaning him up, then applied bandages and steri-strips over the injuries. When he still didn't respond, she pulled out her remote and pressed a green button. Phobos gasped, then froze.

"It's okay," she soothed. "It's me."

He let out a huge breath, his whole body relaxing. "Eris?"

Venus sighed. "Yes."

Phobos sighed, and yawned. "Feel fuzzy…"

"You always do." Venus smiled. "Here. If you promise not to run, I'll release those things."

"Run? Now? I…don't think I _can_ ," he answered frankly. She pulled out her remote and pressed it against the manacles on his wrists and ankles, then the thick collar around his neck. Slowly he rolled onto his side, then pushed himself into a sitting position. He touched his bandaged cheek gingerly, and winced.

"Does it hurt?" Venus asked worriedly. "Was Mercury here?"

"Yeah." Phobos rubbed at his good eye, yawning. "It's okay. I'm fine."

Venus bit her lip. Phobos did not look fine. His face was pale, his one uninjured eye unfocused. He leaned his weight on his right hand, and wobbled. Venus rubbed the back of her neck, embarrassed. She should have woken him up earlier. She knew that the drugs injected through the collar usually made him feel foggy and sick, but she had wanted to save him the pain of the wounds being cleaned. In retrospect it seemed like a terrible decision. Phobos caught her eye, and shook his head.

"I'm _fine,_ Eris," he said firmly, and jumped off the bed. Bracing himself against it, he added, "See? I can stand up and everything."

"I suppose," Venus allowed. She watched carefully to see if he would break into a run, but he stayed true to his word. And he was right; running couldn't be an option for him anyway, not with how unsteadily he stood on his feet. Not good. Not good at all.

"What do you want to do?" she asked, though she knew he had only one option. She simply didn't like ordering him around, especially when he was drugged.

"I'm…tired. I want to lie down. But not here…"

She nodded. "Here. You can lean on my shoulder."

"I'm _fine_ ," Phobos protested, but when she pulled his arm around her shoulders, he leaned into her without further complaint. She smiled a little. It felt good to be in his arms again, even if it was only because he was too sick to walk on his own. She sighed. _Someday_ the insanity that had taken over his brain two years ago would wear off, and they could be together again. Until then…this would have to do.

— — — — — —

" _Is Deimos ready?" Luna whispered. She and Phobos were in the Pokémon room again, though this time they had no brushes in their hands. Luna looked tense, holding her Piplup tightly to her chest; Phobos looked determined, and a little excited, with Pikachu happily resting on his shoulder._

" _Yeah," he said. There was no purpose to whispering, because there was no one to watch them, but he knew Luna couldn't help it. She was nervous. Very, very nervous. Her wings rustled restlessly behind her, though she attempted to keep them still. He sighed._

" _Look," he said. "We can still call it off. We don't have to do it. Not if you're unhappy."_

 _Luna frowned. "Of_ course _I'm unhappy, you idiot. We're probably going to die. But…" She bit her lip, then shook her head. "No. I couldn't…I couldn't live with myself if I gave up this chance to help the others. The new kids. The experiments. We have to stop him, Phobos. We just_ have _to."_

 _Phobos nodded. He didn't have anything to add; she had already said it all. Then he smiled. "We'll do it. We've lasted this long, haven't we? We'll make it through." He took a deep breath, and unclipped his remote from his belt. "Ready?"_

 _Luna nodded, and did the same. "Ready."_

 _He nodded. "All right, everyone. We're leaving!"_

 _The two pressed a series of buttons on their remotes, and every cage door opened at once. 406 roared happily and raced to Phobos' side, immediately demanding to be petted._

" _No, no, not today," he laughed. "We're leaving, guys. Follow us, okay? And…" He bit his lip, but it had to be said. "And stop anyone who tries to stop you. I don't care how you do it."_

 _406 paused to figure out what her best friend meant. After a moment she decided it didn't matter. If her best friend wanted her to follow him out of her lair, who was she to complain? It merely meant more petting! Satisfied, she nodded, and roared at the others. 237 whined in return and her Glaceon tail curled between her legs. 406 roared one more time and 237 lowered her Espeon head meekly. 406 smirked, and rubbed her heads against Phobos. She didn't understand why her best friend wanted to leave, but she knew she would come with him, and that was all that mattered._

" _All right, guys. Let's go!" Phobos said. The door opened, and all of the Pokémon raced out of the room, Phobos and Luna at the lead; Pikachu rode Phobos' shoulder happily, and Luna clutched Piplup to her chest. There were a few shouts of alarm from a few kids in the hallway, but 406 roared and they all ducked to avoid her Thunder attacks. As other members ran out of doors, the other experiments roared and growled, all using various attacks to force the kids back inside. Phobos grinned, but held himself back from actually running. For him, their pace was nothing more than an easy jog. For Luna, this was a sprint. And he would_ not _leave her behind. However, the storage rooms were the first rooms before the entrance, so it wouldn't matter. He already could see the doors, left open wide, like they agreed. He grinned, and ran a little faster. As they raced through the doorway, Phobos darted a few looks around, looking for Deimos. The Pokémon behind him actually sounded happy, and even Luna was smiling while she panted for breath. Everything was going according to plan…though for some reason Deimos was missing. Where was he?_

 _Then the ground began to shake under him. He yelped and tripped as rocks shot from the ground; Luna crashed down beside him. The rocks grew higher, and started to crumble. Phobos threw himself over Luna and Pikachu just as they crashed down, crying out as they landed. Luna whimpered below him._

" _Are you okay?" he gasped._

" _Pi," Pikachu answered weakly. Luna didn't answer, blood pouring from her forehead. Phobos swore, and tried to stand up, but a huge slab pinned him to the ground. Phobos pushed at the rock, trying to unpin himself even as his vision danced with each attempt. A pile of rocks would hurt anyone, but to a fire type, the move was especially destructive. He swore again and pushed, hard; the slab relented and slipped off of his back. With a groan he stood upright, and shoved away a smaller boulder that squashed Luna's outstretched hand. He winced when he saw more blood. It had to be broken. Why…_

" _Deimos!" he cried weakly as Deimos strode forward. "Help!"_

" _Sorry," Deimos said, and stamped his foot. The rocks levitated themselves, and Phobos breathed a sigh of relief. It was a setback, but he wouldn't give up hope. They could still get away. He carefully picked up Luna and pulled her arm over his shoulder. She moaned, but managed to lift her head up. Phobos winced. He had taken most of the damage, but she still was pretty badly off, and one of her wings was as broken as her hand. He cradled her in his arms, and Pikachu clung to his shoulder. Phobos was fast._ Very _fast. There was still time—_

 _Then the rocks crashed down._

 _Phobos was smashed against the ground, and Luna screamed into his ear as he lost his grip and rolled under a large slab._

" _Luna!" Phobos gasped, but she didn't respond other than letting out a faint squeak. Phobos, barely able to breathe under the weight of the rocks, curled himself around Pikachu's body. He reached for Luna, blood dripping down his face. No. He could fix this. He_ would _fix this—_

 _Footsteps. Then, Deimos stood above him. Smirking._

" _Did you really think you could get away with this?" he taunted. Phobos couldn't reply, too stunned to grasp his friend's words. What was Deimos doing?_

" _You…" he finally gasped. Deimos grinned. Phobos first looked down, to see Pikachu still unconscious, but the Pokémon's right ear missing—though the sight was vastly limited by the fact that Phobos' right eye was a bloody mess of darkness and pain. He managed to turn his head and saw Luna beside him. Her eyes were wide, and blank, and when he weakly brushed his hand against her bloodied face, he felt no breath from her mouth._

" _You!" Phobos snarled. He snapped the fingers of his free hand and a fireball appeared in his palm. He threw it with a flick of a wrist and it barreled towards Deimos—_

" _Get away from him!"_

 _Phobos gasped for breath as a tsunami extinguished the fireball and roared over his body. After the double dose of Deimos' Rock Slide attack, the Surf was excruciating. He checked Pikachu; the little rodent was still breathing, thank God, but bleeding heavily. All the wave did to Luna was wash the blood off her face. She did not react in the slightest. Deimos smiled as Dysnomia stepped into Phobos' view. The teenager squeezed Deimos' hand. Deimos held her close for a second._

" _How could you?" Phobos gasped, struggling as one of the slabs dug into his back. His face blistered in pain, but he ignored it, because from the corner of his mangled view he saw Luna's bleeding Piplup limp into the forest. He knew there was no hope for himself now, or Luna. But he could stall for time, and maybe—_ maybe _—Piplup could escape._

 _Deimos sighed, shaking his head. "You chose to betray Lord Sol. Our_ father. _He doesn't take kindly to traitors…and neither do I."_

 _Phobos turned his head slightly, and saw Luna's hideously blank eyes gazing into his own. His functioning eye narrowed._

"You're _the traitor, Deimos! You killed Luna!" he snarled. He tried to get up one more time, but the rocks only settled down, pinning him down and crushing him into the ground. He gasped for breath. Deimos shook his head._

" _That's not right, Phobos. I_ executed _a_ traitor. _Oh. And it's not Deimos anymore. We've gotten a promotion. Thanks to you, really." He smiled, Dysnomia smirking at his side. Deimos moved his hand slightly, and the rocks, already pinning Phobos to the dirt, somehow pressed down harder. Phobos gasped for breath one last time, but couldn't inhale, his ribs too crushed from the weight to even let his lungs inflate. Phobos blacked out, barely seeing Eris rush to his side, screaming at Deimos. However, even as he fell into unconsciousness, he knew he could never forgive Deimos,_ never _, not for this. And somehow, someday, Phobos would make him pay._

— — — — — —


	9. CHAPTER NINE

16

 _ **NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

CHAPTER NINE

— — — — — —

" _Okay, Celeste. You remember what you promised. You'll stick right by me, right?"_

" _Right," Celeste answered proudly. The nine-year-old sat straight and tall atop her Ponyta, every inch a young horsewoman. She stroked Tony's fiery blue mane happily, and waved at the forest bordering the ranch. "Let's go!"_

 _Pina bit her lip for a moment, worried. But...well…_

 _She sighed. Her mother had sanctioned the trip, and that had to be enough for her. She kicked Dashing's sides gently. "Okay. But follow me, okay? Don't wander off on your own!"_

" _I won't," Celeste answered, a little hurt. "I play follow the leader all the time!"_

" _With hallucinations," Pina muttered, but too low for Celeste to hear. "C'mon, Cellie. Let's get going."_

 _Celeste smiled and followed her sister's Rapidash onto a dirt path proudly. This was the first time she had been allowed off the ranch in years—so though for Pina it was a simple ride through the forest, for Celeste, it was the grandest of adventures._

" _When are we going to go fast?" Celeste asked her sister eagerly. Since entering the forest Pina had kept Dashing at a steady walk, and showed no signs of speeding up._

" _We're not," Pina answered shortly._

" _Why?" Celeste pouted unhappily. "I can do it!"_

" _That's not the point, Cellie. We're just going on a walk today._ Maybe _next time we'll ride a little faster."_

 _Celeste heaved a heavy sigh. "That's no fun." Her eyes trailed to the scenery around her, then widened. She laughed._

" _Cellie?" Pina asked hesitantly, biting her lip. "Are you okay?"_

" _I'm—hehe!—I'm fine."_

 _Pina narrowed her eyes. "Cellie, what are you looking at?"_

 _Celeste shook her head seriously. "Nothing." But she only held the pose for a second before breaking out into more laughter._

" _Right. We're heading back home," Pina ordered, pulling Dashing's head to the left. Celeste's eyes widened._

" _I don't want to! We just got started! This isn't fair!"_

 _Pina sighed, and shook her head. "_ Life _isn't fair, Celeste—"_

 _Celeste gasped. Pina tried not to swear, and grabbed for Tony's reins just as Celeste kicked the Ponyta's sides._

" _Celeste! Stop! Get back here!" Pina screamed as the little girl dashed into the forest, the Ponyta under her galloping as though the demons of hell were after him. Pina kicked at Dashing's sides._

" _Catch her!" she cried. Dashing snorted with excitement and in a split second pushed himself into a gallop. He knew his rider was worried about her sister, but more importantly that upstart Ponyta had galloped off thinking he could outrun a Rapidash. He would be schooled quite quickly. Dashing tossed his head and sprinted, his diamond hooves leaving little holes in the dirt as he passed. He caught sight of the runt's blue tail, and pushed faster, as though the little pony was a Grand Derby finish line. Dashing would_ never _be outrun by a_ Ponyta _—_

 _Then, a creek appeared, at least_ _ten feet_ _in width. Pina and Dashing, having won many a jumper tournament, cleared it and landed on the other side._

 _Tony hadn't._

 _Pina pulled Dashing to a stop and dismounted. She ran to her sister, who was crying, Tony's head in her lap. She looked injured, with cuts and bruises, but didn't appear to notice. Pina's hand reached up to fidget with her Friend Ball._

 _Tony's fire was out._

 _Dashing walked to the edge of the creek and tried to huff in Tony's face. There was no response. Dashing snorted and tried again._

" _We—we have to get him out of the water," Pina said quickly. She tried to pull the animal free, but he was too heavy for Pina to lift alone._

" _Celeste, help me!" she snapped. Celeste didn't look up._

" _Z-Zammy…he…and Tony…"_

" _Cellie! Focus!"_

 _Celeste jumped, but realized what her sister wanted to do. With the two of them pushing they managed to drag the Ponyta out of the water. Pina winced. Tony breathed laboriously, eyes dull, the fire on both tail and mane completely out. Dashing sniffed him, then reared and backed away._

" _Tony…no…"_

 _Pina took a deep breath. "Okay. You ride behind me. We'll come out here with the hands and bring him in—"_

 _Celeste scrubbed tears from her eyes and shook her head. "Espy will fix him."_

 _Pina sighed, exasperated. "_ _Cellie_ _, a hallucination cannot heal a horse!"_

" _Espy can," the girl replied calmly. "She'll fix him."_

— — — — — —

"Is this it?"

Pina stared at the map in front of her, then looked at the small house before her as Paul parked the Jeep. She bit her lip, then nodded.

"Okay then. Let's get moving." Paul hopped out of the vehicle, and Pina followed. The house seemed nice enough, with white walls and blue trim, but there was an unsettling feeling about it. A large flag with an orange field and several black stars hung above the door, and a black-leafed wreath with orange fruit graced the blue front doors. The door opened, and in the doorway stood an older, slightly overweight woman with pink hair cut in a tight bob, dressed in comfortable purple sweatshirt and pants. The woman smiled when she saw the two on the doorstep.

"Paul!" she said cheerfully. "Oh, perfect! Come in, come in, curfew's almost started." She ushered them both in, then slammed the door shut and began to lock it. Pina noticed there were a great deal of locks—she counted four by the time the woman was done. Paul cocked his head.

"I don't remember that when I was here last time," he said. The woman sighed.

"Things have changed here." She smiled at the two and waved them into the kitchen. "My name is Amelia," she said cheerfully, glancing at Pina.

"I'm Pina," Pina answered, smiling a little herself. She had expected the woman to be a little more serious, like Looker—not relaxed and motherly. She could even smell a fragrant homey scent coming from the kitchen. Pina grinned widely. Vegetable soup. Her favorite.

"Sit at the table. I've made dinner," Amelia said. "I'm sure you two are hungry."

"Very," Pina replied, but paused to look around. The interior of the house was as cute as its exterior, with a nice wooden table with a pretty chair and against a wall a comfortable couch. A large flat-screened television blared out the news, though Amelia and Paul appeared to be ignoring it. In the back was a stone fireplace, a fire crackling cheerfully inside. Above the mantle was a large portrait of two women and two little twin boys sitting together, all dressed in cute little suits or nice dresses. Pina could recognize one of the women as Amelia, though only with effort. The Amelia in the portrait looked younger, with a wide, infectious smile, with no trace of the worry lines that decorated her face now. There were also pictures of two young children sprawling across the hallway and up a flight of stairs—all, it appeared, the same boys, only at different ages. Pina reached for her Friend Ball.

There were no children in the house.

"Follow me," Amelia said awkwardly, noticing Pina's glances at the portraits. She entered the kitchen and began to lay out the table. Paul automatically grabbed silverware from a drawer to help her, and the two fell into conversation. Pina, feeling a little useless as she didn't know Amelia or the way her kitchen worked, merely sat down.

"How's Mary holding up?" Paul asked as he lay out napkins and bowls. Amelia sighed.

"It's rough. She's so stressed…" She looked at Pina. "Paul already knows, but I'm sure you don't. Mary's on the City Counsel. It's never been easy, but…" She paused. "A few months back, she started getting headaches. They've been getting worse and worse…we went to a doctor. He said there was nothing wrong, but gave us a prescription for the pain…" She sighed. "She should be home soon." She looked at Pina, then shook her head. "Honestly. Have you two been eating? You look starved!"

Pina smiled a little, toying with a spoon. "Rest stops. Don't worry about it."

Amelia shook her head disapprovingly and put a full bowl of soup in front of each teen. "That's not food. Eat!"

Pina grabbed a spoon and dug in. The soup reminded her of her mother's, but saltier. She sighed. It was a little too salty for her, but she was sure Celeste would have liked it. As she ate, she heard loud knocking from the front door.

"Mary?" Amelia called, and jumped from her chair. Paul rose as well, but the woman merely waved him down, darting to the front door. Peeking through the eyehole to be sure, she called, "Mary, is that you?"

"Yes," a tired voice replied. Amelia immediately began to unbolt the door, and after a few minutes of locks clanking and keys clashing, allowed Mary inside. As soon as the woman entered, she locked and bolted the door shut once more. Mary sighed and let a briefcase fall from her limp hands in the hallway. She then walked into the kitchen, massaging her head with each step.

"Soup?" she asked, not looking up. Then she glanced at the table, where Pina and Paul sat, spoons in hand.

"Oh…Paul. And…?"

"Pina," Pina answered, unsure of how to interact with the woman. Though dressed in a sharp business suit, Mary appeared wilted, and what was clearly once beautifully styled hair clung limply against her sallow face. Her brown eyes had heavy bags hidden under thick makeup, and each stride was heavy and slow. She crashed into a kitchen chair as Amelia placed a bowl of soup before her.

"How bad is it?" Amelia asked.

Mary groaned. "It's bad…" She rubbed her forehead, then glanced at Paul. "It's nice to see you, Paul. And I've heard all about you, Pina. Do you have Chimera with you?"

"Yes. We think if we get it into Eterna Forest, it can find where it came from."

"The forest, eh?" She looked over at Amelia. "Any wine, Amy?"

"No." Amelia pointed at the bowl, and handed Mary a spoon. "Soup. Eat."

Mary sighed. "I'm not very hungry. Today was…" Her face turned stormy. "It's gone bad, Amy."

"Bad?" Amelia sat down, and took Mary's hand. "What happened?"

Mary merely shook her head in reply. Both Paul and Pina waited, intensely curious about what had tired Mary out so.

. "They're…it's…they act like they're all insane," she said finally. "Celestic City and Floraroma allied with us today. They each sent a representative…"

Amelia looked taken aback. "So what does that mean?"

"If things keep going as they are…" Mary sighed. "I'm trying to stall, but—there's a final vote on Friday. If it goes through…" Mary looked down and toyed with her spoon. "We'll declare war on the Alliance."

All three gasped, and Amelia's face turned pale. "But—your—but the peace treaty?"

"I don't know what happened. One minute everyone was ready to sign the agreement, then Celestic's representative showed up—" She groaned, and rubbed at her forehead. "Even Tom agreed with her, and he's always been against declaring war. I don't understand it. Amy, we don't have _nearly_ the firepower that the Alliance has, even if we draft all of our Pokémon trainers. Celestic has never had armed forces. Floraroma is a joke. If we take the Alliance on we'll get slaughtered. I got that through their heads, and they were ready to sign the peace treaty…then that girl came, and everyone suddenly became war hawks." She rubbed at her forehead again. "Tom says we have a secret weapon now. What could be so secret that _I_ don't know about it!" She shook her head. "The light's too bright here. Amy, I'm going to go rest." Mary glanced at Paul and Pina and gave a weak smile. "I'm sorry I couldn't bring home more pleasant news."

"No, no," Pina said quickly, catching Paul's eye. "Please, go rest. You've done enough today."

Mary nodded and stood up. Amelia bit her lip, then quickly grabbed a tray and put the bowl on it. "I'll bring this with you," she said. "Paul, Pina, I'll be back in a moment."

"Of course." The two disappeared up the stairs, leaving Pina and Paul alone.

Paul shot out of the chair. "We've got to move." He darted into the refrigerator and left with a loaf of bread and a bag of sliced cheese. "Good enough," he said, shoving the food into his backpack. Pina gave him a funny look. "I think we've got a long drive," he said simply. "This smells bad."

"You think Nebula's behind it?"

"I'm not sure. But either way, borders are going to get tight very soon. We need to get out of here."

Pina nodded. "Amelia, Mary, we're leaving, lock the door behind us!" she called as they dashed out the front door. It reopened just as the two jumped into Looker's Jeep and took off. Amelia stood on the porch for a moment, then sighed and went back inside. It was time to call Looker.

— — — — — —

 _It hurt. A lot._

 _This was the one thought that dripped into Phobos' brain as he rode the wave of sleep into consciousness. The pain raced through his body to the point where he didn't even dare open his eyes. Why did it hurt so much? Even after the worst of surgeries, Lord Sol had always given him painkillers—_

 _Lord Sol._

 _Everything came back in a rush. The escape attempt. Deimos' betrayal. Luna…and her blank eyes. No. He couldn't think about that, not yet. Not if he wanted to stay sane. If he_ was _sane. Now, the boundary was blurring…_

 _No. He wouldn't think about that, about any of it. For now, he simply wanted to know why he hurt so much, and where he was. He knew someone had laid him down flat on his stomach, with a pillow framing his face so he gingerly rested his head on his right cheek. The left side of his head burned with pain, and opening his eyes became a Herculean feat. However, he eventually did—or at least opened the left. The other, as he carefully reached up to touch, was covered with a thick bandage. He gingerly braced himself on his forearms, one of which was in a cast. He stared at it in bafflement._

 _Someone had dressed his wounds. Someone had put him here, wherever here was. Someone had made sure he had a pillow to rest his head on._

 _Why?_

 _Lor—no._ Sol. _Phobos_ _knew Sol did not take kindly to treachery. Phobos shouldn't be here, wherever he was. He should in the same place as Luna. He should be—gone. Not bandaged and cared for. Not alive._

 _He slowly turned on his side, wincing. Everything past his waist hurt like hell—almost as bad as the pain coming from his face. He looked downward, and saw one of his legs was in another cast. That wasn't a problem. In fact, the cast barely registered on his brain at all. Because, laying on top of his legs and draped down the back of the cast…was a Raichu tail._

 _He stared at it for a moment, his mind blank. Slowly he pushed himself upright, and with a wince, touched it. He felt the fur rustle, and a sense of being touched under his fingertips._ Move, _he thought, and the tail's tip twitched. He recoiled in horror._

 _Because he knew. He_ knew _there were no Raichus available for surgery. Just as he knew his Pikachu, which had always insisted on never evolving, was the only Pikachu in the compound. Only Pikachu, who had never had a surgery, because Phobos worked so hard to protect him._

 _For a moment, he stopped moving, as still as a statue. He couldn't even breathe._

 _Sol didn't take kindly to traitors…_

 _He screamed. When no one answered, he screamed again. Heedless of any pain, he punched the pillow. Then the floor. Then the wall. It rattled under his fist, and he saw he had, in fact, punched a vent. It didn't matter. Pikachu had been forced to evolve, and now was heavily mutilated—possibly worse. There could be no argument. Phobos was attached to the evidence._

 _Pikachu—no, Raichu—was now an unprotected victim. Luna was dead. And for some reason, Phobos had been left alive, knowing these things._

 _The ultimate punishment._

— — — — — —

 _Day after silent day passed—or at least so Phobos assumed, as the lights never shut off, and no open windows reached whatever pit he'd been thrown into. He had the room memorized now—white walls, white floor, with a foam pad for a bed and a hole in the ground for a toilet. Not that mattered. He knew one would come in; if he hadn't known about a place like this, there was no way anyone else would…which meant he was alone. For good. Phobos had always liked people, and knowing he would probably never see another person again dug away at what little sanity he had left. He talked to himself, sang songs, anything to fill the silence. If it was quiet, he remembered things. Things he very much wanted to forget. Raichu…Luna…_

 _How could he be so stupid? Why did he possibly think escape would work? Luna had been right, and she died. He hadn't. Why was he alive? Why—_

" _What on earth happened to you, kid? You've been going on for quite a while."_

 _Phobos blinked. The voice—it couldn't be, but it didn't sound like his. But that wasn't possible. Sol would never allow him access to another person. He would never relent this punishment. Never…_

" _Sorry I waited so long. I just had to make sure you were insane. If they ever come to check on you, they won't believe you heard me."_

 _Phobos gasped, his head turning to see every angle of the room. There was no one there. But the voice…_

 _He frowned. "I'm not insane," he answered guardedly. Then he paused. "Perhaps I am. I'm hearing voices. I guess I've finally cracked…"_

" _You cracked ages ago. But don't worry about it. For someone insane, you're remarkably sane."_

 _Phobos' eyes narrowed. "What does that mean?"_

" _You're just sane enough to be insane, kid. Don't worry too much."_

" _What does that mean?_ Who's talking to me?!"

" _Look at the vent."_

 _Phobos blinked, and turned. Bright light streamed through the tilted slots, except a shadow—_

" _A hand?"_

" _Mine," the voice replied. "I'm not something you've made up. My code name is Atlas."_

 _The voice was deep, and masculine. Phobos cocked his head. It sounded like it belonged to an adult—something he had never seen in the compound, barring Sol and the late Persephone._

" _My name is Phobos," Phobos said._

" _No, no," Atlas replied, clearly irritated. "You do have a name. But it isn't Phobos."_

" _What? That's—that's my name! I don't have any other…" His eye narrowed. "Do you?"_

" _Of course. Our 'names' are merely code names. I've forgotten my real name, unfortunately. I had to give up a few things to remember the important things. Is Persephone still around? She was good at making people forget 'unnecessary facts'."_

" _No. She served Lord Sol in a final experiment. Everyone serves Lord Sol." The words were so routed in memory that Phobos almost didn't hear himself say them. Atlas sighed._

" _Ah. So Sol murdered her. Then I'm the last."_

" _M-murder?" Even with the heretic thoughts that constantly crossed Phobos' mind, he had never even thought to apply that word to Sol._

" _Oh yes. He murdered many people to get what he wants. It's experiments now, is it? It used to be 'services'. I'm surprised. He's more accurate with you. So. Phobos. Who's Luna? What happened to you?"_

" _I—I—" Phobos started to shake. "I—"_

" _Forget I asked," Atlas said hurriedly. "You can tell me in your own time."_

" _O-okay," Phobos answered, relieved. He saw the horrors often enough in his nightmares without speaking of it. His tail twitched. Though he had his eternal reminder, he still didn't want it to be true—and talking of it would make it real._

 _Atlas was quiet for a moment. Then he sighed. "How about I tell you about me, kid?"_

" _O-okay." Phobos still felt in shock that he was speaking to someone—a real, human being—and any excuse to make him talk was a good one. Anything to hear someone speak who wasn't himself. He actually smiled, something he hadn't done since the escape attempt. Even though he had only spoken a few words with the man, it already comforted him immensely to know there was someone else with him—even if in another cell._

" _As I told you, my code name is Atlas. It's a sort of joke, of course."_

" _Why?"_

" _I'm the architect who designed this compound. I built most of it, too. I'm a strong man."_

" _You…made this place…?"_

" _I had the help of a couple other Group Zeros. But I know a few secrets about this place no one else does." Atlas laughed. "If I ever get out of this cell, you'll never see me again." He paused. "Well, perhaps_ you _will. I know you're insane, but you're less insane than the others."_

" _I'm not insane," Phobos growled back. "And what's Group Zero? It starts with me! Group One!"_

" _Oh, no, it doesn't. We thought…" Atlas sighed. "We believed him. Believed everything. Even before Persephone…" He sighed again. "If I could go back, I'd smack myself upside the head. We_ believed _him. And he used us."_

" _What…what did you believe?"_

 _Atlas cleared his throat. "Sol is a surgeon, a gifted one…but too radical for his peers. They felt his ideas were too dangerous, too…inhumane. But we…_ thought… _we knew him better. He was going to change the world. We would use the knowledge he acquired to help everyone—all those people like us, missing arms, legs, everything, we'd help them regain it all. But human arms and legs—he said that would never work. Those had to be taken from corpses, and none of us were willing to desecrate a body like that. But perhaps…after all, so many Pokémon are humanlike…" He sighed. "We were fools."_

" _That's—that's not what he says now," Phobos said, shocked. That was the original purpose of Team Nebula? It couldn't be. "We—we gather others. We're superhuman. The ones who will lead the way to the future. We're going to help the chosen people claim their land, then…" He paused. "Oh, dear. I believed that?"_

" _Don't worry, we were bamboozled too. So many of us died during the construction of this place…this building has been paid for in blood. But even in my insanity I slipped a few things in. Things no one knows about…no one except me."_

" _What did you do?"_

" _Never you mind about that," Atlas snapped. Phobos glared at the vent._

" _You're the one that brought it up."_

" _Ah, well. It's something I remember. Oh, speaking of…"_

" _What?"_

" _They've stopped bothering with me. I'm too old to fall for their tricks. But you, you're young. Malleable. Not like this geezer." He laughed. "The day he learned children were easier to hypnotize than adults…" His voice grew harsh. "That's the day I left."_

" _I take it that didn't work."_

" _No. I was too angry."_

" _Why?"_

" _Never you mind about that."_

 _Phobos sighed. Apparently his new companion wanted to talk, but everything Phobos asked was simply brushed off. He assumed the man simply couldn't talk about it. That wasn't much different than Phobos; he wasn't sure if he'd ever be ready to talk about the escape attempt. Phobos' tail twitched. He wanted Atlas to talk more, but every time the man started, he immediately cut himself off._

 _Atlas took a deep breath, then released._

" _Sorry, kid," he said. "I'll admit I'm not used to holding many conversations myself. It's…been a while."_

 _Phobos pressed his back against the wall near the vent, legs bent and arms wrapped round. "It's—it's fine. I…I tried to leave too."_

" _I thought so. That explains why you're here, then. I didn't know Persephone could slip up like that. Good for you."_

 _Phobos laughed bitterly, and flicked his tail. "Oh, yes. I did so well."_

" _At least you aren't eating that man's lies."_

 _Phobos thought of Deimos, and his heart hardened. "Yeah. You're…right."_

" _Of course I'm—"_

Shhhhkt. Beep beep! CLICK.

 _Phobos paused, confused. First a man talking through the wall, now beeping. Today was certainly a busy day…_

" _Phobos!" a girlish voice screamed. Phobos looked up and saw Eris, her face pale and nervous. His eye widened, and she raced in and crushed him in a tight hug._

" _You're okay! You're okay! I knew you would be! You're okay!"_

" _Eris…?" he gasped in shock. Her eyes filled with tears, and she clung to him even tighter._

" _I—I didn't know where they put you! Lord Sol wouldn't tell me! I had no idea—but are you, aren't they feeding you? You're so thin…" She released him, and tried to scrub her tears away. "I—I'll make sure you're okay, I promise. I…"_

" _What—how—what are you doing here?"_

 _She sniffed. "I came down here to find you. Lord Sol said you were still in the compound, but—but—I didn't know where you were! I only just got the key for this level today. I didn't even know this was here! After I found out I thought you might be here but I wasn't—but you are! Oh, Phobos!" She grabbed him into another tight hug, shaking with sobs. Phobos hugged her back. She nuzzled her face against his neck and her grip tightened. He relaxed into her embrace, and a part of him hoped she would never let go._

 _Eventually, she untangled herself from him. He sighed, then brightened when she held his hand. It was quiet for a little while, until she summoned the courage to speak._

" _Phobos…why didn't you tell me?"_

" _Tell you what?"_

" _You—with_ Luna— _and you didn't even…"_

 _Phobos winced at hearing the name. "I'm sorry…I thought…" He sighed. "I didn't…"_

" _If you would have told me, I would've helped you!"_

 _Phobos' eye widened. "You—you would?!"_

" _Yes! Lord Sol is very forgiving. He would've understood everything if you just told him how you felt. And I would have helped…Phobos, you can still…"_

 _Phobos heart turned to ice. "You would've told Sol about the plan, then."_

" _I—there's other ways, Phobos! I know you were worried about everyone, but Lord Sol cares for all of us! And he—he still cares about you! If you said you were sorry…"_

" _I'm not." Even Phobos was surprised to hear himself say this. But it was true. He couldn't imagine groveling to Sol after all that had happened. He shook his head slightly, and flicked his tail. "I don't think I'll ever be."_

" _Don't say that!" Eris sighed, and leaned into Phobos' shoulder. "I…let's not talk about that, okay? I finally found you…"_

 _Phobos relaxed slowly. His world had opened up quite a bit in the last few minutes—a man behind the wall, Eris busting the door down—and he needed a moment to take it all in. He looked at Eris, and cocked his head._

" _Something's different…" He paused, then realized what it was. "New uniform?"_

" _Oh…yes." Eris smoothed the fabric of the new silver tunic dress she wore, making it shimmer in the light. The long silver hair pin holding her hair in a tight bun glittered when she turned her head away, embarrassed._

" _Why?" He grasped the hair pin and gently tugged it out. Her hair fell loose and cascaded in a purple wave down her back. She blushed. "I liked your hair down."_

 _Eris fidgeted. "Well…um…I…kinda got a promotion."_

 _Phobos cocked his head. "Why?"_

" _Because…never mind. Anyway, my name's Venus now."_

" _Why?" His tone was more urgent now, demanding. Eris looked away._

" _I…" She looked at him, tears in her eyes. "I knew, okay?! I knew!"_

" _Wh…what?"_

" _You—how could you think I_ didn't _know you were going to do this?! I know you better than you do! I love you, and you—you didn't even—so—I—"_

"You _told him. Not Deimos." Phobos' voice was cold as ice._

" _He was—going to tell on you anyway! I thought maybe I could help you but you didn't even notice me and Lord Sol said, that, that—" Tears trickled down her face. "I didn't want you to die!"_

" _You could have helped us…told us…"_

" _I couldn't! Lord Sol said I couldn't! So I tried—I made sure Mercury didn't…"_

" _But you didn't care about Luna." He said it without expression, intonation; a flat statement. Eris snorted and shook her head derisively._

" _She_ chose _it. But you didn't have to!_ She's _the one who made you think this way! It's_ her _fault!_ She deserved it! _You didn't!"_

 _Silence. Then: "Please leave."_

 _Eris looked at him, eyes blotchy and red. "I…I tr-tried, Phobos…I really did…"_

" _Please. Leave." His face was pale, but there was no emotion. A blank slate. "Please leave right now."_

" _I…Phobos…"_

"Leave."

 _Eris sniffed, then shot straight up, leaving Phobos sitting on the floor. "Fine! I—I n-never cared a-anyway! You can just, just, just rot here f-for all I care! You care more about_ Luna _than_ me _!" She pulled a small remote off of her belt, and clicked a button. The door opened with two beeps and a loud CLICK. She darted through and slammed it shut. Phobos didn't even look up. Instead he remained curled against the wall, hunched over, tail binding itself tightly around his ankles. He pressed his face into his knees, and began to sob._

— — — — — —

 _Author's note: Mercury kinda lucked out with all this, as it happens. It was supposed to be Mercury/Venus, Neptune/Uranus, since Sol likes following in pairs when possible. But Deimos didn't want to be called Uranus, so he took Phobos' name. I don't think Phobos cares._


	10. CHAPTER TEN

17

 _ **NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

 _Author's note: blaaaah sorry! Had to make a corset and dress in three weeks. It was harder than it sounds. Never again (she says as she patterns a ballgown)_

— — — — — —

CHAPTER TEN

— — — — — —

Celeste woke up slowly, a headache pulsing a faint beat against her temples. She pushed herself up from the foam pad she lay on, and looked around. Yes, the door with the food slot. Yes, four white walls. Yes, a hole in the ground for a toilet. She was home. Tears formed in her eyes, and she brushed them away.

"Pheebee?" she called loudly, turning to the vent. "Pheebee? It's me. Celeste!"

There was no reply. Celeste pushed her back against the wall, and curled her arms around her folded legs. This time, when the tears came, she let them fall freely.

Her one chance! Her one chance to actually _find_ Pheebee, and she failed. Stupid Raichu! Stupid _Zammy!_ If she hadn't gotten distrac lainted by one and chased by the other, she could have met him, and then…well, she still wasn't quite sure what would happen then, but at least he wouldn't be alone in that hospital! Her shoulders shook, and she let out a sob. The _first_ time she could have helped Pheebee instead of the other way around, and she messed it up! He was probably—probably…she didn't even want to think the word. No. Pheebee was strong. And brave. And whatever was happening to him, he'd make it through. Even though Celeste had failed. And he was probably all alone now. And…

"Stupid!" she snarled at herself. "Stupid, stupid, stupid! Stupid Raichu! Stupid Zammy! _Stupid!"_

The words released a small amount of the emotional storm within her, but not much. She wasn't just upset—she was _furious._ If Zammy showed up right now, he'd get a punch in the face for this! And as for that stupid metal voice, well—

 _Shhhhkt. Beep beep! CLICK._

Celeste stopped crying and tried to wipe the tears away. It was probably Venus rubbing in her failure. But when she looked up, she saw her door remained closed. That meant…

 _Pheebee!_ she wanted to yell, but she didn't dare. It could be someone coming in to clean things up. It could be a new inmate. She couldn't make a sound until she was sure.

"Thanks, Eris," a male voice said tiredly, and Celeste's heart nearly jumped out of her chest. He was alive! _Pheebee was alive._ She wanted desperately to talk to him, but held her tongue. Venus was there.

"Of course, Phobos. Here. Lie down."

There was no answer, just the sound of shifting fabric. Then a sigh.

"Thanks."

Venus paused. "Oh, dear," she said very softly. "That's twice…you _are_ out of it…"

"Huh?"

"Nothing. Do you want me to bring you something to eat? Water? Anything?"

"I…no, I'm…fine," Pheebee slurred. "I…just want to sleep."

"Are you sure? All—all right. I'll stay with you."

Pheebee yawned. "Okay…"

More fabric rustling and the faint clicking of heels against linoleum. Celeste bit her lip. She desperately wanted to talk to Pheebee, but she couldn't make a sound with Venus there. When would the girl leave?! She held back an angry growl and curled up next to the vent, waiting for the blessed sound of the door opening, every second an eternity.

 _Just_ _leave_ , she thought angrily. Espy stuck her face in front of Celeste's eyes. Celeste jumped, then glared.

 _Do you want me to check on them?_ Espy grinned. _I can. I can walk through walls._

" _Shut up,"_ Celeste mouthed. Espy rolled her eyes.

 _Fine, wait then,_ she pouted, and settled down next to Celeste, curling into a little ball. Celeste shook her head and held back a sigh. Espy was right. Right now, there was nothing to do but wait—and listen. Venus couldn't stay in there forever. Celeste settled into a more comfortable position and laid down, ear still near the vent. She just had to wait a little longer…but at least he was alive. That alone made her feel giddy. And she just had to wait until Venus left. Just wait…

As the adrenaline from the morning oozed out of her system, Celeste felt her own eyes grow heavy. _Well, if Pheebee's going to sleep, I might as well too,_ she thought, then looked at Espy.

" _Wake me up when Venus leaves,"_ she mouthed. Espy glared at her, and her tail flicked in irritation.

 _Fine. But I'm not your personal alarm clock._

Celeste sighed, softly, and closed her eyes.

— — — — — —

" _Are you okay, kid?" Atlas didn't bother to hide the worry in his voice. The sobbing had stopped, replaced with silence. Atlas didn't like it at all. "Hey. Kid. You all right? Can you hear me?"_

"… _She_ _…"_

 _Atlas paused. The word had been less than a breath of a whisper, but he had heard it._

" _Kid?"_

" _S-she…" A sobbing gasp. "S-she…I…I thought…I thought she…"_

" _Kid…" Atlas was at a loss on what to do. Then he sighed. "Persephone did a number on you, didn't she?"_

" _Wh…what?" The kid sounded confused now, a welcome change from the utter despair previously in his voice. "Persephone…?"_

" _She made you love that girl, didn't you?" Atlas sighed. "She liked doing that to people. It helps…keep control. Usually." He sighed again. "Your friend—'Eris'—she couldn't help it, kid. She really couldn't."_

" _She…couldn't…?" The kid's voice filled with rage. "No! She_ could _! I did! Luna did! She could have_ warned me _!"_

" _Not all of them are as strong willed as you, kid. And she's been here a lot longer than you have. The fact that she fought to save you…that's impressive, for her. She used to love no one but Sol." His voice turned bitter. "She has a great capacity for love, you know. She loved everyone. Until Persephone twisted her soul…"_

 _The kid sniffed. "How…how do you know this?"_

" _I…" Atlas sighed. "I told you. I've been here for a long time." He smiled. "How about I tell you a story?"_

" _A…a story?"_

" _Yes. I know many of them."_

 _Silence. Then: "Okay."_

— — — — — —

There was silence in the Jeep as Pina quietly drove and Paul slept. Finally Pina sighed, and parked on the side of the road.

"I'm getting tired. Your turn, Paul." She nudged the boy awake, then got out of the car.

"Are we through Eterna City?" he asked, and rolled over into the driver's seat. Pina jumped back into the passenger seat, then shook her head.

"No, it's not for another few miles. We're still in the farms." She yawned and strapped her seatbelt on. "Wake me up when we get into the forest, okay?"

"Of course," Paul answered, and hit the gas. In just a short time Pina fell asleep.

 _RING RING. RING RING._

Paul jumped, then reached for his coat pocket to retrieve the cellphone inside. Pina shifted, but didn't wake up.

"Yeah?" he said sharply. "I'm driving."

"I know," Looker said dryly on the other end. "You stole my Jeep."

"Yeah, yeah. We need it. 'Sides, you have a plane."

"Which is useful, I'll admit," Looker answered, "but not very helpful when going into a densely packed forest."

Paul sighed. "I guess Amelia told you."

"Of course she did." Looker sighed. "That intuition of yours again. Melisa's finished. They _are_ in the forest."

"We were already aware of that. _Where?"_

"Farther in than we thought. _Much_ farther. She said something about a Parasect nest, and some sort of pollen residue…" He paused. "But we're pretty sure they're _somewhere_ by the Old Chateau."

Paul's eyes widened. "But we looked there! Remember? Gardenia kept complaining about ghosts!"

"Seems like we should've looked harder. Paul, listen. You're going to be on your own, at least for a while. City borders shut down about an hour ago."

Paul winced. "Thought that'd happen. Also thought you'd get through before they closed."

"No such luck. We're going to have to sneak through. We'll catch up to you as soon as we can."

"Can you track the phone?"

"Bobby and Trish can. Why?"

"I…just have a feeling."

"I'll get them on it. Listen, I have to go. I'll touch base in half an hour, okay?"

"Sure. Just text me the coordinates."

"Of course. Good luck."

"You too." After Looker hung up, Paul nudged Pina awake. She jumped, then rubbed at her eyes.

"Already?" she asked, hiding a yawn. "That was fast."

"No, not yet." The phone vibrated, and Paul tossed it into Pina's lap. "Melisa's done. She found them."

"She…" Pina stiffened, now entirely awake. "She found them?!"

"Yes. Looker called me. They're somewhere by the Old Chateau."

Pina shivered. "The Old Chateau…isn't that place haunted?"

"By Nebula, apparently. Look." He waved at the phone. "Melisa figured out where they are. It's not exact, but…I'm pretty sure from there Chimera can find its way home." Paul's grip on the steering wheel tightened. "And then…"

Pina nodded. "How do we get there?"

"Looker texted us coordinates. You just have to program them into the GPS."

Pina smiled, and toyed with the Friend Ball for just a second. "Gotcha…and done. Ready?"

"I've been ready for years." Paul grinned. "Let's do this!"

— — — — — —

 _As Phobos finished eating, he gulped down the handful of pills in a small cup on his tray. He hated them, but knew he had to take them to avoid organ rejection…though the mere fact he continued to receive them left him baffled._

" _Atlas?"_

" _Mmm?" it sounded like Atlas was still eating. Phobos leaned against the wall, near the vent._

" _Why do they keep bringing us food? Or medicine? I don't get it."_

 _Atlas sighed. "Perhaps Sol still has a little humanity left in him. Though I wouldn't know. He lost his sanity years ago…though perhaps he never had it." He sighed. "I should have realized the purpose of this level. I soundproofed all the walls…made them to withstand any Pokémon attack…I thought I was designing a level to contain unruly Pokémon. I should have realized I was building them to contain unruly_ people… _Anyway, I forgot to insulate yours, and installed your vent on the wrong wall. I was distracted at the time. I'm glad I did, now."_

" _So that's why we can talk. But why the medicine…?"_

 _Atlas sighed. "I don't know. As I said…Sol's insane. Who knows if he even has reasons anymore?"_

" _He must. No one would do something like this without_ some _reason. Atlas…what was he like when you knew him? Where did he come from?"_

" _He…" Atlas was quiet, then sighed. "I don't remember how we met. I just remember…he was upset because no one would accept his ideas. He said he wanted to help amputees…of which I was one. He wanted to prove he could. He has money, I don't remember how…but he always had issues with proving what he could do. If people would let him. If he could get access at enough bodies, he would fix_ everyone. _That's how he got us…to follow him. We all had different talents. But we…believed him. Then he took…" Atlas stopped talking for a moment, then sighed. "Something changed in him as he worked on us. A different look in his eye. I should have realized…he didn't care about us. He just wanted_ more _. More people. More Pokémon. More. He gave us code names, made us forget our old lives. He was Sol, the center of the universe…we were those that rotated around him. After that, the Nebula Project changed focus. He needed to learn more. Always more…which meant he needed more bodies to work with. He needed a way to get them, and he realized how to do it. A way he would_ never _stop_ _getting bodies…" He stopped speaking once more. For several minutes it was nothing but quiet. Just as Phobos opened his mouth to speak, Atlas continued his monologue._

" _And we, whom he named Group Zero…died, one by one. And when there were only a few of us left, he replaced us." His tone turned to disgust. "With children! I_ _couldn't tolerate that. Not when…"_

 _Phobos waited for Atlas to finish, but he faded into silence._

" _I'm sorry," he said as the quiet lingered._

" _You don't have to be, kid. I am the one who earned this. You did not. And_ never _be sorry. If you get the chance, fight back. I imagine a kid like you can give Sol quite the headache, given the chance."_

 _Phobos sighed and scratched at the cast on his arm. "I'd like to give him a little more than_ that _." Little tufts of fur fell free, and Phobos groaned. "I hate these things! I'm so ichy! And my fur's falling off!"_

" _You know, most people don't complain about being de-furred," Atlas answered wryly. Phobos snorted._

" _Yeah, well, most people can't throw fireballs, either." He paused, and scratched at the cast again. Beside him the back of the formerly white door was covered with the charred circles of several fireball blasts, and on the ground several claw marks. "I think I melted some of the cast, too. What the hell did you use when you built this place, Atlas?"_

" _Ah. Well, quite a lot of things, actually—"_

Shhhhkt. Beep beep! CLICK.

 _Phobos quieted down, and looked up at his door, surprised. It had been a very long time since anyone had popped open a door for a visit, and he wondered whether it was his or Atlas'. However, a second later, the door slid open. Phobos' functioning eye widened._

" _Get up, ru—"_

 _Phobos didn't give Deimos a chance to finish the sentence. He snapped his fingers, and a fireball flew at Deimos' head; the teen ducked just in time for it to singe the tips of his hair. Without losing a beat Phobos jumped up and crashed into the young man, knocking both to the ground, his hands finding their way around Deimos' throat. He squeezed. Deimos gasped for air, but Phobos ignored it and tightened his grip. Deimos slapped his hand against the ground, and suddenly a sharp pain jabbed itself into his right arm, and something cold seemed to pour inside. Phobos ignored it, choosing to focus on killing Deimos, but within seconds the concoction in the syringe took effect, and Phobos fell limp, eyes closed._

 _Mercury coughed and shoved the boy off of him harshly. He rubbed at his throat, and let Neptune pull him up from the floor._

" _I told you Venus should have gotten him," Neptune scolded._

" _She"—Mercury coughed again—"She refused." He coughed once more, and Neptune rubbed his back, worried._

" _Well, he's been down here for almost two months. You know how he was." She laughed; it was cruel, not friendly. "He's probably insane."_

" _Like he wasn't already?"_

" _Hah! True. Let's get him out of here."_

— — — — — —

Shhhhkt. Beep beep! CLICK.

 _Atlas looked up as he heard the beeping of a door. It had to be the kid's; no one bothered with Atlas anymore. He moved closer to the vent with a wince, and a spasm of pain shot through his body. He wanted to curse, but knew he couldn't. Not if the kid's captors were there…_

" _Later, Phobos," a young man's voice sneered, and Atlas heard the thump of a body crashing to the ground._

" _Wake him up and let's get out of here." A woman's voice this time, deep and sultry, but annoyed._

 _A sigh. "Yeah, I know…but one thing first…"_

BEEP!

 _Atlas heard the kid gasp. Then, groggily: "Wh…wha…"_

WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM!

" _Augh!"_

" _Payback," the young man hissed. "Let's go." The door closed with a swish and a couple beeps. Atlas was quiet, trying to judge whether the nasty young man had locked himself inside with the kid or had left. There was no sound other than painful panting. Another spasm shot down Atlas' spine._

" _Kid?" Atlas asked, trying to ignore it. It was a risk, but he couldn't wait. He didn't have time. When there was no response, he repeated, louder,_ "Kid?!"

 _A whimper. Then, softly: "A…Atlas?"_

" _Kid!" Atlas cried, relief flooding his body. "Are you okay?"_

" _Atlas? I—I can't…I can't…" It sounded like the kid was crawling, until he settled next to the vent. "Hurts…"_

" _Relax, kid," he called. "I'm not going anywhere."_ Yet, _he didn't add, and winced as yet another spasm flared from his arms. "Just rest."_

 _The kid sighed, clearly drowsy. "Okay." In just a few moments, Atlas heard the familiar light snore of his friend. He sighed, and shook his head. He could hang on for a little bit longer._

 _He had to._

— — — — — —

 _Phobos woke up slowly. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he yawned widely._

" _Atlas?"_

" _Feeling better, kid?" Atlas answered. Phobos cradled his bandaged head, and winced._

" _Er…Atlas?"_

" _I said, are you feeling better?"_

" _Atlas?"_

"Are you feeling better?" _Atlas shouted. Phobos winced._

" _N-no. My ears…he…he did something…I can barely hear you…" He touched one of the thick, sparkling silver manacles on his wrists. "They took off the casts, but they put these…bangles on me. I…"_

 _He snapped his fingers, but instead of creating a fireball his hand simply went numb. He tried the other, with the same result. "My hands go numb whenever I try to use my powers. And…" He touched his neck, which was encased by a matching silver collar. "There's a collar…I don't know why…"_

" _I seem to recall Psyche working on some sort of control system, before she died. Sorry, kid. Not my department."_

" _I don't want to know anyway." He sighed, then jumped when Atlas yelped._

" _Are you all right?"_

" _Sure, sure."_

 _Phobos' eyes narrowed. "Atlas. Are you all right?"_

 _For a little while it was quiet. Atlas sighed._

" _No. I'm not."_

 _Phobos' eye widened. "What—what's wrong?"_

" _They stopped my medicine."_

"Stopped? _But, Atlas, that means—"_

" _I know."_

" _Why didn't you tell me?!" Phobos exploded. "I—I'll give some of mine to you! I'll—next meal, I'll—"_

" _Stop it, Phobos."_

 _Phobos froze. Atlas had_ never _called him by his name before. "Atlas…"_

" _Even if you could fit the pills through these slots, I wouldn't accept it."_

" _Why?!"_

" _Phobos, I'm old. You're young. You need to survive. I've had my time."_

" _No!" Phobos brushed away tears, and smashed his hand against the vent, making it rattle loudly. "No! I can't—I can't do this without you! I'll go crazy! Please! Atlas, don't leave me alone!"_

" _Phobos, I need to tell you something." The man was wheezing now; he had hidden his condition well, but it was quickly becoming obvious how damaged he actually was. "This is_ important. _You_ have _to remember this."_

" _I…" Phobos sniffed, but forced himself to focus. "Okay."_

" _I made this place, with my own hands. There weren't many of us. And I added something. A way out." He took in a deep breath. "A secret passage. You…_ when _you escape, I want you to use it."_

" _But…"_

" _Hush. It's tricky to get into, of course, but you can do it. And if she's still alive…I want you to take my daughter with you."_

" _Your…daughter? You never said..."_

" _She was sweet. Young. She loved everyone. Then, one day, after I mortared the last stone, she disappeared. I searched everywhere for her, but couldn't find her. Until she came out of the hospital, with an_ 'adjustment'. _And she no longer knew who I was. Only Sol."_

" _Atlas…"_

" _Her name is Erin. Sol named her Eris."_

" _Eris?!_ My _Eris?!"_

" _Yes." Atlas' tone was heavy, and very, very sad. "I don't know what he did to her to make her like this. If I could, I'd throttle that man until I found out."_

" _Get in line," Phobos answered wryly. Atlas laughed._

" _Yes, you'll have to do my throttling for me. But…promise me. Promise. Promise me you'll take Erin with you."_

" _I…" Phobos' tail twitched. "Okay. I promise."_

" _Good." Atlas took a deep breath. "Now, remember this. At the end of this hallway is a dead end. Nothing but a blank wall. Put your hand against the bottom right corner—two inches from the floor—and say my daughter's name. Her_ real _name. The passage there will take you directly to the entrance."_

" _Atlas…"_

" _Don't forget."_

" _Of course not! I'll_ never _…"_

 _Atlas sighed in relief. "Thanks, kid…" His voice trailed off. Phobos jumped up._

" _Atlas?! Atlas!_ Atlas! _Answer me!_ ATLAS!"

— — — — — —

 _The most terrible thing was that no one else noticed Atlas was dead until the room started to smell._

 _Phobos lay on his pad, back against the vent, emotionless. He'd already cried. And begged. And raged. There was nothing left in him. His last friend was gone._

 _Phobos was alone._

 _He heard a shuffling, and looked across the tiny room. A tray of food, accompanied by a paper cup filled with pills, had been shoved through the food slot. He looked at it blankly, then turned back. Uneaten food from the days before festered on their trays. His body hurt, but, like everything else, he ignored it. He was alone, but it didn't matter, because he didn't even have the energy to speak. He sighed. He knew he promised Atlas he'd get Eris out of here, but it had been an empty promise, to comfort a dying man. There was no way Phobos could even escape alone, much less drag along a very unwilling girl. There was only one way out, and Atlas had shown him how. Another couple missed doses and he'd be free…_

 _Outside, Venus stared the orderly down._

" _He doesn't return the plates?"_

" _He doesn't seem to do anything."_

" _Why…?" She looked at the door, then bit her lip. "What about…his medicine?"_

" _Don't know. We haven't gotten any cups back, either."_

" _Oh…kay. Okay. I'll…talk with him."_ If I dare, _she added privately. Ridiculous. Phobos was less than a grunt now, a prisoner—yet she, Venus, an officer, was scared of speaking to him! He ought to feel honored she even came down to check on him, after his behavior before! And who even said he_ could _speak to her like that? He was in_ no _position to sass_ anybody _!_

Move, _she ordered her feet._ God damn it, _move_. I'm not scared. I'm not. I'm angry. _Angry_. And angry people don't skulk outside doorways!

 _She pulled out a remote, and pressed the green button. The door opened with two beeps and a loud CLICK._

" _Phobos?"_

 _Venus wrinkled her nose at the smell, and saw plates of rotten food scattered around the room. And, more importantly, several dosages of immune-system suppressant medicines still in their little cups, untouched. She looked over at Phobos, and saw he was thin, even thinner than the last time she saw him. And curled on his side…and breathing lightly, eyes closed…_

" _PHOBOS!" Venus screamed, crashing to her knees and cradling his head in her lap. "Phobos! Phobos!_ Someone get me a stretcher, now!"

 _For the first time, the phrase was not just shouted, but broadcasted across the entire complex. The orderly outside, being closest to the scream, reeled, clutching his head._

"I said get me a stretcher!" _Venus screamed again._ "NOW!"

— — — — — —

 _Phobos woke up a day later, confused, sick, and strapped to a bed. He couldn't understand where he was. He wasn't in his room. He wasn't outside. Perhaps he w_ as _dead? That would be nice, but if this was the afterlife, it wasn't much better than the previous one. What a waste of effort…_

 _Then he looked around, though this was difficult as his neck was fixed in place through his collar. The most he picked up was that there was a white ceiling, and another bed to his left. There was a clear plastic bag attached to a metal pole, and a tube trailing down; he moved his hand slightly, and felt something foreign inside. An IV needle. He shivered under the blanket. It was cold. Or perhaps the IV was making him cold…_

 _Wait. IV. Bed. Restraints._

 _He was in the hospital._

" _NO!" he screamed, and tried to push himself free of the bed, but the restraints held firm. "No! No! NO!"_

" _Phobos, calm down!"_

 _Phobos ignored the command, instead yanking his arms and legs, trying to get the manacles to budge. He would_ not _just lay here and wait for that monster to walk in. No. He had to get out, before something_ else _got replaced—_

" _Phobos, it's me! Calm down!" Eris appeared in his field of vision, but not for long, instead burying her face into his neck. "Please, please calm down…"_

" _Eris?" Phobos stilled, completely confused. "Wh-what…"_

" _Phobos…" Eris looked up, face tearstained. "Do you know what you did? What you've done? You almost_ died, _Phobos!"_

" _Why did you stop me?" Phobos spat. Eris' eyes widened in shock._

" _Phobos…"_

" _No choices! Nothing! Apparently I can't even choose when I die!"_

" _Phobos…I don't_ want _you to…"_

" _Oh yes," Phobos snapped. "Of course not. Instead I'll die on this table. I_ will, _eventually. Don't you get it?_ It doesn't matter anymore."

" _Phobos…oh, I can't talk to you like this."_

 _She took out her remote and pressed the tip against Phobos' collar and manacles, each making a small click as they released from the table. She did, however, leave one foot attached, as Phobos had a dangerous glint in his eye she'd never seen before—and she couldn't know if he was stable enough to know friend from foe. He pushed himself up, and ripped the IV's needle free from his hand. It bled, but he didn't seem to care._

" _Look," she said. "I…" She sniffed. "I tried…but…Lord Sol says you have to stay on the fourth level. But I'll visit you, every day. So you have to promise you won't stop your medicines anymore. And…"_ And I miss you. God, I miss you. _"Phobos…"_ …Go back to being yourself…

" _Every day?" He sounded skeptical. "You'll forget."_

" _I won't. I really won't."_ I can't. I really can't.

 _He sighed, then shrugged. Venus glared._

" _No shrugging! Promise!"_

 _His eye darkened for a moment, and he looked down. "…Yeah. I did, didn't I." He sighed. "Fine. I promise."_

 _Eris rubbed at her eyes. "Okay." She released the last manacle, and jumped onto the bed next to Phobos as he rearranged himself into a more comfortable sitting position. She sighed and leaned into his shoulder. Shaking, Phobos put his arm around her. This was fake. This feeling was fake. It was just a trick to keep them both under control; it wasn't real. But God, it_ felt _real. And right now he needed, oh how he needed, to know he was loved. By_ someone _._

 _Nothing more was said until there was a knock on the door._

" _Venus? Lord Sol wants you."_

" _Right," she sighed. "Tell him I'm going to escort Pho…this patient back to his…room first."_

" _Okay…" the grunt shook her head slightly and disappeared._

" _Are you ready for a walk?" Eris fretted. Phobos smiled._

" _I'm fine."_

 _And, for just a second, he was._

— — — — — —


	11. CHAPTER ELEVEN

_**NEBULA**_

 _By Marisa Mockery_

— — — — — —

 _Author's note: oh man, sorry for the cliffhanger. Life got in the way, as usual….part of life me being losing the USB stick this story was held on. Had to rewrite the last five chapters almost from scratch. Not a small bit disheartening. Oh, and the ballgown looks amazing. I'm now one of three cosplayers I know of who've cosplayed Princess Rosa, but personally I think I rocked it!_

— — — — — —

CHAPTER ELEVEN

— — — — — —

 _Beep beep!_

Venus looked down at her watch and sighed.

"I've got to go, Phobos," she said softly, and gently pushed his head off of her lap and onto his pillow. "I'll check on you once I'm done, okay?"

"Mmph," Phobos mumbled vaguely, then turned on his side, falling into a deeper sleep. Venus smiled a little, then quietly stood up.

 _Shhhhkt. Beep beep! CLICK._

"I'll be back in just a bit," she said softly, and stepped through the door. It closed with two beeps.

 _Hey! Celeste!_ Espy hissed, and pawed at the girl's face. _Crazy lady left!_

"Mrr…Espy?" Celeste asked sleepily. She pushed herself up slowly, and rubbed at her eyes.

 _Crazy lady's gone,_ Espy repeated.

"Oh!" Celeste smiled widely. "Pheebee! Pheebee, are you awake?"

"Mmm…" Phobos yawned. "Celeste…?"

"Yes! Are you all right? I was so worried! I thought…"

"'M fine. Just…sleepy." He yawned again. "Stupid collar…"

"I tried to find you!" Celeste cried. "I really did! But Zammy…well, never mind." She smiled. "I saw your Raichu."

"My—you saw— _Raichu?!"_ Pheebee gasped, instantly awake. _"How?!"_

"I pretended I liked Sol. Venus thought I was serious, so she took me out to meet him. But stupid Zammy and the metal voice started chasing me and I ended up back here…"

"Raichu's still alive? Is he okay?" Phobos asked urgently. "Have they hurt him?"

"He has a lot of scars on him. He was asleep when I first saw him, but then he woke up. He got very angry at Venus."

"Yeah, I know why he did," Phobos said, a touch sadly. "But at least he's all right. I was…a little afraid Eris was lying to me."

Celeste hesitated. "Well…she sorta _was."_

"What do you mean— _aaaaah!"_

"Pheebee!"

"I'm…" Phobos tried to finish the sentence, but spasms of pain flared from his right eye, too strong for him to even speak. He reached up a hand and touched the eye gently, then bit back a scream. A mere touch made the eye explode in agony. He curled into a ball, trying to control his breathing. He knew this pain. And once he would have welcomed it. But now…

"I…" He shuddered as another spasm shot through his whole body. His head flared white, and he screamed.

"Pheebee?! _Pheebee!"_

"Cel…" he tried to say, but then another horrible spasm shook him, mere seconds after the last one. He knew what this meant. Organ rejection…No. _No!_ He couldn't leave poor Celeste alone. Not like how Atlas left him. He had to push through. He _had_ to—

Phobos hissed in pain and clutched his head. There had been a time he would have welcomed this…but Celeste…

" _Pheebee!_ Answer me! _PHEEBEE!"_

Phobos moaned. Last time he'd been too numb from Atlas' death to feel the pain…but now he fought to ride it. No. No. This was _not_ how it would end! He couldn't do this to her! He…he…

His body relaxed as he lost consciousness.

On the other side of the wall, Celeste jumped up and down from panic, her long hair flaring out around her. Espy sat near her, facing the wall, her ears up high and her eyes glittering.

"Pheebee! Answer me! _Please!_ What's happening?!"

 _Do you want me to check? I can walk through walls._

Celeste glared at Espy. "This is _no time_ to make _jokes_!"

 _I can._

Celeste had had enough of it. "Fine! Go!"

Espy smiled, and stood up. She flicked her tail nonchalantly.

And walked through the wall.

 _Oh, my. He looks bad. He's all curled up. His eyes are closed…and that collar of his is flashing red. What should I do?_

"Do…?"

— — — — — —

" _Espy will fix him."_

 _Pina sighed, exasperated. "Cellie, a hallucination cannot heal a horse!"_

" _Espy can," the girl replied calmly. "She'll fix him."_

"Celeste! _This is_ not _the time!"_ _She pulled herself up onto Dashing's saddle, and waved at Celeste. "Get behind me, we have to get to the ranch—"_

 _Celeste shook her head. "We don't have to. Espy will…"_

— — — — — —

"...fix him," Celeste whispered.

Espy cocked her head, though Celeste couldn't see it. _Are you sure?_

— — — — — —

 _Pina groaned and mounted Dashing. For a moment her back was facing her sister. "Celeste, get over here,_ now! _"_

 _Celeste ignored her, and looked at Espy. "Fix him."_

Are you _sure_? We've never tried fixing anything this big…

" _I_ said _—"_

— — — — — —

"—FIX HIM!" Celeste screamed.

 _Okay,_ Espy answered, and closed her eyes. Her body began to glow as she concentrated energy around herself.

 _Heal Pulse!_ she cried, and a series of pink shockwaves exploded from her body, racing to and through Phobos. He jerked, gasped, and opened both eyes. To his astonishment, he saw a faint outline of a tiny Espeon—an Espeon with a three-pronged tail.

 _I'm done,_ it said, and disappeared.

"Pheebee!" Celeste wailed. _"Pheebee!"_

"Ow!" Phobos cried, and covered his ears with both hands. "Not so…loud…?"

Gently he snapped his fingers next to his ears. His mouth fell open.

"I can…hear…?" He blinked, and rubbed at his right eye. It was almost like…

He closed the left, and his vision changed completely. Before, the Luxray eye he'd been given was useless, worse than useless, a headache and a ticking time bomb. But now…

He looked at the wall separating himself and Celeste, and saw her collapsed against the wall, her heat signature glowing clearly— _through_ the bandage.

"Celeste?" he asked softly. "What…what happened?"

Celeste sniffed. "You were hurting. I made Espy fix you."

"Fix me…?" He looked towards his door, and his ears perked. He could hear running footsteps. He had to think quickly. Through her madness Celeste could heal, truly heal—an ability Sol had always desired but never could achieve. If he knew Celeste could do…this, he would take her and use her until there was nothing left to use. He would do his damnedest to turn her into another Eris—a slave, with useful abilities. And Phobos was certain that would break her.

No. He would _not_ allow that to happen. Whatever the price.

He dropped to the ground, facing the wall.

 _Shhhhkt. Beep beep! CLICK._

" _Phobos!"_ Eris wailed, crashing to the floor next to him. She pulled him up against her chest, tears welling in her eyes. "Stretcher! Now!" She whimpered, and held him closer. "Oh God. Phobos. No. Please. _No_ …"

Phobos opened his eyes slowly. "Hey…Eris."

Eris gasped. "Phobos! You're—but your collar—"

Phobos paused, then pulled her close and hugged her tightly.

"I never wanted to do this," he said, and meant it.

Eris blinked, confused. "What? Phobos—"

Phobos smashed his head into Eris', leaving her reeling as it smashed the Espeon gem embedded in her forehead. She fell back, dizzy and confused. Phobos snatched at the remote clipped to her belt, and pressed it against the manacle wrapped around his tail.

"I didn't want to hurt you," he said. "I promised I'd take you with me. But I don't have a choice. I'm sorry."

Eris opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, Phobos wrapped his Raichu tail around her wrist, and sent a wave of electricity into her. She froze and fell over, jerking slightly. A Thunder Wave was all that was necessary to take Eris down; unlike Phobos, she had never been designed for battle. Behind her the orderlies screamed.

"What did you do?! Venus! Wake up! _Venus!"_

Phobos pressed the remote against his right manacle, then the left. They clanked to the ground.

"Sorry, kids. Trust me, this is not how I thought it'd work out either. But you guys can't get in my way, okay?"

One, a girl with a Leafeon's tail and a Jynx's hands, glared at him and held her hands in front of her. "I don't know who you are, but you won't get away with hurting Venus!" She took a deep breath, and a glowing ball of energy formed between her hands. "Ice Bea—"

Phobos snapped his fingers and hurled a fireball at the girl, smashing the forming Ice Beam into pieces and the girl into the wall. As she slid down Phobos darted forward and hit the other orderly with a Mach Punch. Both passed out, and Phobos shook his head.

"Didn't anyone ever teach you kids to _act_ , not _talk_? Honestly. This is why _I_ always did the training. Those two are so _sloppy_ …" He picked up the children and placed them inside his cell. He pressed the remote against the thick collar around his neck. As it unlocked, he grabbed it and, after a brief moment of hesitation, placed it on Eris.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. "I hate this thing. But they'll notice it's off as soon as it stops giving readings. And I can't afford to get caught." He pressed a button, and Eris relaxed as the collar shot a small dosage of the stun spore/sleep powder mix that Phobos hated so much into her bloodstream. He hesitated once more, then sighed, and threw her over his shoulder.

"I'm keeping my promise, Atlas. You better be right about that secret passage." He glanced at the remote, and pressed a large red button. The door clicked shut. Phobos then aimed it at Celeste's door, and pressed a green. The door opened, Celeste already hopping from foot to foot.

"Pheebee!" she cried, and ran out, excited to finally _see_ Phobos. "Pheebee, are you okay?"

Celeste froze as she stared at Phobos, eyes wide. Phobos gasped, his face white.

For Celeste, it was a surprise. She never expected him to have quite so many scars on his face, and certainly didn't know he had Growlithe ears in place of human ones. He wore a white long sleeved shirt and long white pants—the same uniform as her own. However, the stylized 'N' that rested over her heart had been ripped off of his. She saw both his hands and feet were large and covered with gray fur. His hair was black and very short, and stubble covered his face. It did nothing to hide the yellow electric sac implanted in his right cheek, and nothing covered the brightly glowing Luxray eye. However, his left, human eye was warm and brown—and both eyes were quite wide. For while Phobos' appearance had surprised Celeste, Celeste's appearance left Phobos horrified.

" _Luna?"_ he whispered. Celeste groaned.

"Yes, I know I look like her. But I'm not her, I'm Celeste. Now how do we get out of here?"

Phobos took a deep breath, then let it out. "Sorry. I didn't realize…it—it doesn't matter. This way." He carefully took her hand and ran the end of the hallway, facing a blank wall.

"I think you're going the wrong way," Celeste said. "This is a dead end _._ Not the way out."

"Did I ever tell you about Atlas?"

Celeste paused. "No…"

Phobos smiled. "Well, he knew a few things about this place. Things no one else knew about. Like this." He bent down, and pressed his hand against the right lower corner of the right wall.

" _Erin_."

The wall slid open, revealing a passageway behind. Celeste gasped.

"How did you…?"

"Atlas told me. C'mon, they'll figure out what happened as soon as they realize Eris isn't coming back up. We've got to get out of here first."

"Right." Celeste followed Phobos into the darkness, clutching his hand tightly. He paused, staring at the door.

"How do I close it?" He paused. "Maybe… _Erin_." The door slid shut, and lights flipped on overhead. Phobos smiled. "Let's get moving, Celeste. We don't have much time."

— — — — — —

"I think this is it," Pina said, staring at the phone's screen intently. "Or at least as close as this GPS's gonna get." Paul nodded, and braked.

"Yeah, I think I can see the Chateau from here. Time for Chimera."

Pina handed the phone back to Paul and jumped out of the Jeep. She unclipped the Friend Ball from the necklace around her neck, and Dashing's pokéball from her belt. She threw both in the air; simultaneously monster and Rapidash appeared before her in a flash of red. Dashing walked over to her and nuzzled her gently. She scratched his muzzle and yanked his saddle and bridle out of the back of the Jeep. She saddled him as quickly as she could, and threw herself astride. She turned to Chimera, who sat at attention.

"Okay, Chimera, listen closely."

The creature's Luxray ears perked, and the Ampharos head stared at her intently.

"I need you to go home. Do you understand? _Go home."_

Chimera cocked its heads and sniffed the air gently—then once again, but with more intent. The two heads turned to look at each other, and nodded.

It began to run.

Pina kicked Dashing's sides. "Keep up!" she yelled at Paul, and, as she fell into a furious gallop, the Jeep's engine roared behind her.

— — — — — —

"Pheebee…how did you…know…how to make…that remote…work?" Celeste panted as she ran.

"Years of observation," he answered dryly. "Is this as fast as you can run?"

"Ye…ye… _yes_."

Pheebee frowned. "Not fast enough. Nowhere near fast enough." He put Venus down for a moment. "Here. We'll do piggy back."

Celeste gave him a look. There was no way Pheebee could run faster with both Venus in his arms _and_ Celeste on his back. She shook her head, but did as asked, climbing aboard piggy-back style. She still didn't see the point. Pheebee looked surprisingly fit, but he was no Machamp. Honestly, there was no way…

Pheebee picked up Venus princess-style, and began to run.

Celeste gasped as clouds of dust billowed around them and a strong wind streamed through her hair. In mere seconds they had reached a second dead end.

"This should be the way out," Pheebee panted. He knelt again, and let Venus down onto the floor. "Off."

"Okay…how come you can run so fast?"

He tapped his foot, rustling the gray fur gently. "Infernape limbs. We get the same abilities as the Pokémon we've had transplants from." He shrugged. "I have no idea how it works. I never could figure out that medical stuff, that's why it's Deimos' job. But that doesn't matter. I'm going to open this door in a second, okay? I want you to get out and _run._ Run as fast as you can."

Celeste frowned. "Why? You can run much faster than me! You could just carry me."

Phobos shook his head. "I can't."

"Why?"

Phobos looked uncomfortable. "Raichu. I—I can't leave him here. I can't _abandon_ him. And the Pokémon room is right next to the entrance. It'll be easy."

"Pheebee, no!" Celeste cried. "We can come back for him—"

Pheebee glared at her and pointed at the door. _"Luna, GO!"_

Celeste stomped her foot. _"I'm not Luna!"_

Pheebee sighed, and rubbed his forehead. "I know. I know you're not. But please. _Please_ go. I'll be fine. I promise." He shook his head. "I can't leave him here, all alone. I can't. I _won't."_

Tears welled in Celeste's eyes, but she brushed them away angrily. "So you're abandoning _me_!"

"No! I'll find you. I swear I will. I just—I have to get Raichu out. If I escape without him, I'm sure they'll kill him. I—I can't let that happen."

Celeste sniffed. "What about Venus?"

Pheebee's tail lashed behind him. "I'll figure something out." He smiled weakly. "It'll be fine. But—but if you want to help me, you _have_ to run. Please?"

Celeste rubbed away more tears, then prepared herself. "Okay. I will. Ready?"

"Yes."

Pheebee turned to the wall. "Let's hope this works… _Erin_."

The wall slid open, and the lights overhead switched off. Celeste smelled fresh, pine-scented air. She poked her head out, and saw a wall of trees below a sea of stars. Kricketots and Nincadas chirped loudly, filling the cold night air with noise.

"No moon," Pheebee said, craning his head. "Good." He stood still for a moment, eyes closed, breathing deeply. Celeste wondered why, then realized it had been years since he had last breathed fresh air. Impulsively she darted forward and crushed him into a tight hug. Phobos looked down, surprised—then smiled and hugged her back.

"I'll be a second," he said, grinning. "Get out of here. I can't do anything if I'm worrying about you."

Celeste rubbed at her eyes, then nodded. "You too. You'd better find me."

"I will," Pheebee said, tapping his now functional Luxray eye. "Now _go."_

Celeste ran. As she cleared the clearing and entered the forest proper, she heard the door click shut faintly.

Something exploded.

She didn't look back. She didn't dare. She couldn't let Pheebee down. She ran and ran, sharp stones digging into her bare feet, cutting into them roughly. She tried to ignore it and merely focused on one foot in front of the other until she was too exhausted to take another step. She stopped, leaned against a tree and paused to catch her breath.

 _You're running away?_

Celeste looked down, and saw Espy sitting next to her. The little Espeon sat tall and prim, with her tail curled around her feet. She looked up at Celeste curiously.

"He…said…to…" Celeste panted. Espy shook her head.

 _I thought you cared about him more than that._

Celeste jerked upright. "I do! That's why I'm _running!_ He _told_ me to! _"_

 _And I thought you were running because of_ me.

Celeste looked behind her, and to her horror saw the giant Alakazam but a few feet away.

"Zammy!" she gasped. The Alakazam smirked, and moved a step forward. Celeste stepped back.

 _We'll give you a reason to run,_ another voice taunted—the metal voice. Celeste turned, and for the first time saw a hot-pink Metagross standing behind her—but instead of four legs, it stood on eight, like a giant spider. Celeste took another step back.

 _Run,_ the Metagross taunted. Celeste turned and bolted, heedless of anything in front of her. She heard Zammy and the Metagross roar behind her, and forced herself into a faster pace. It didn't matter which direction she ran. There were monsters behind, and freedom in front. Her feet pounded against the ground in a frenzied rhythm as she sprinted further into the forest.

 _You're going the wrong way. You're leaving Phobos behind,_ Espy said. Celeste couldn't find the breath to answer.

 _Run! Run!_ screamed the Metagross behind her gleefully. Gasping for breath, Celeste tripped and crashed into a bramble bush. She pushed herself upright, heedless of the many thorns tearing into her clothes and prickling her skin, occasionally drawing blood. For a moment she found herself stuck, with Zammy and the Metagross gleefully catching up to her. She pulled herself free, the thorns ripping at the already torn fabric as she moved. Celeste took off once again. Espy paced her easily.

 _I suppose you'd better run after all,_ the little Espeon said thoughtfully. _Although Phobos against that whole complex? He's not coming after you, Celeste. You_ know _that._

"He…will…"

 _How many people are in that place? That cafeteria was packed. And how many of them actually_ like _Phobos? Only that mess of a Raichu, and it can't even use any attacks. Phobos isn't going to make it out. He's going to distract them. He just wanted to make sure_ you _escaped._

"M…me…?"

 _Yes. I doubt he expects to survive this. Only you. Only_ Luna.

Celeste stopped running.

The Metagross and Zammy shrieked behind her. Cold air blew around Celeste, making her hair dance around her and goose bumps form across her body. She turned to face the monsters. Her expression was grim.

 _If Pheebee dies…if he really dies…_

 _I'll be alone._

The Metagross and Zammy screeched to a halt before her. Zammy walked forward until he and Celeste were face to face. The Alakazam raised one of his rusty knives and pressed it against Celeste's throat. She stood still, shivering.

 _Are you ready to die?_

"Pheebee told me something," Celeste said softly. "Do you remember?"

 _What? To run?_

"No. To _fight back."_

— — — — — —

406 charged into the forest blindly, running as though the demons of hell were behind her. She didn't pay the slightest attention to the furious clomps of the annoying Rapidash's diamond hooves digging holes in the ground, nor the roar of the Jeep behind them. Her Luxray head sniffed the air once again as the Ampharos head took over the running. Yes. She was sure. She _knew_ that smell, even after all this time…

She screeched to a halt, then sniffed the ground carefully. Yes. Odd. She could smell him, but she smelled something else. A female. Young. Bleeding…

She carefully followed the scent, her Luxray eyes glowing brightly to find the source. The scent became stronger—she was getting close! She kept her Luxray nose pinned to the ground now while the Ampharos head looked round. She pushed through the brush and saw a young girl standing firmly on the forest floor, glaring at what appeared to be a group of trees.

"No. To _fight back._ Now _GO AWAY!"_ the girl screamed, and pantomimed pushing, then kicking something away. For a moment 406 thought the girl was talking to her, but no. The girl's eyes were firmly focused on something before her—something that even 406 couldn't see. The girl blinked, then relaxed.

"Wow…" she said softly. Then she looked down. "Okay, Espy. Let's go."

Purring loudly, 406 jumped on the girl, sniffing her intensely. Yes. _His_ smell—her best friend's smell!—was all over her. She licked her, and tasted his sweat. This meant the girl knew where he was! Finally, after all these years, she would find her best friend!

Under her the girl let out a scream, and tried to push 406 away.

"You get off of me!" She paused, and looked carefully at 406. "Wait…"

"Chimera, what are you doing?!" 406's other friend cried behind her. The Jeep and Rapidash crashed to a stop, and her friend gasped.

"Ce… _Cellie_?!"

The girl ignored 406's friend completely, her eyes wide. "Four…Four-Oh-Six?"

406 purred and gently nudged the girl. The girl petted the Luxray nose, making 406 purr. 406 moved, and the girl stood up.

"You…you know me? No…you know _him,_ don't you? Phee—Phobos?"

Phobos? Yes, that was what the humans called him. 406 nodded. Her other friend jumped off of the annoying Rapidash and ran up to the girl.

"Cellie! It's me! Pina!"

The girl squeaked in fear and hid behind 406. "Who are you?"

406's friend gasped. "Celeste! It's _me!_ Why..."

The girl shook her head. "Doesn't matter. Phee…Phobos is in trouble. We have to help him. I left him behind."

406 growled. The girl stared at her feet. "I'm sorry. He told me to. He went back for Raichu…"

406 sighed. She knew her best friend was stubborn, but he usually had his heart in the right place. It irritated her that he went back for Raichu instead of finding 406, but…well, he had never been the sort to leave a friend behind. 406 clawed at the dirt, thinking as hard as she could between her two heads. She hadn't been able to help him the last time they ran; the purple girl had gotten in the way. 406 paused. No. _This_ time was different. This wasn't running _from_. This was running _back._ 406 began to purr. No one would fight over this!

Utterly ignored, Pina stared at the two in shock. Not only was her sister not responding to her at all, but Chimera was interacting with Celeste in a way Pina had never seen before. Until now, Chimera had been friendly to no one but her, at the most tolerating other humans at Pina's request. And Pina _knew_ Chimera had never met Celeste before. So why…?

She shook her head. It didn't matter. What mattered was that she had Celeste back. Pina stepped forward and grabbed Celeste's arm. "Celeste, it's me. Pina. Get into the Jeep. We'll take you to Looker, and—"

Celeste looked at her blankly, then murmured something under her breath, quickly, like a mantra. Pina managed to catch the tail end. " _…'Sister, Pheebee'…_ Are you 'sister'?

"What? Of _course_ I'm—"

Celeste sighed. "Okay. Sister. I didn't _think_ you were part of Nebula. You're not wearing the right clothes."

Pina simply stared. "Cellie…"

Celeste gently pushed Pina's hand free of her arm. "Sorry, sister," she said. "But Phee…but my _brother_ is in trouble."

"Celeste, we don't _have_ a—"

Celeste looked at Chimera.

"I can't run very fast," she said. "My feet got all cut up running here. But I bet _you_ can run _real_ fast. And we're going to the same place, aren't we?"

Chimera paused, and both of its heads nodded. To Pina's utter shock Chimera knelt, and Celeste climbed onto the monster's back. She twined her hands into the Luxray head's mane.

"Let's go!" she cried. Chimera nodded, and burst into a fierce run. Pina mounted Dashing and kicked his sides.

"Celeste, get _back here!"_ she yelled, and Dashing dashed into a furious sprint behind the monster. This was the _second_ time that upstart mishmash of a Pokémon tried to outrun him. If it weren't for Pina holding Dashing back, he'd give that thing a real comeuppance! But for now, Dashing settled for riding the monster's tail. Behind them the Jeep roared to life, and Paul floored it. He glanced at the passenger seat, checking one last time that Torterra and Luxio's pokéballs were available for a quick throw. He had a feeling he would need them.

— — — — — —

 _Celeste's abilities are based more or less on Sabrina, just shifted a bit. I think if healing moves exist for Pokemon, psychic humans would probably be able to do it too._


End file.
